The Return of Perseus Jackson
by Retrobution
Summary: When Percy gets banished to Tartarus for an unforgivable crime he did not commit, he gets angry. Even from the depths of Tartarus, an earthquake that nearly destroyed Olympus had happened. When he finally escapes however, some Olympians are still keen on keeping him in hell. This is the story of the return of Perseus Jackson. Do not read if you do not like torture, rated strong T.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians  
**  
Prologue

"I didn't do it," Percy Jackson said with betrayal in his voice. "I didn't do it. Why would I kill my own half-brother? How could you accuse me of doing so?"

It was Friday, after Capture the Flag was played. One of Poseidon's second only child had been murdered, and some people seemed to blame Percy.

"It is understandable that you feel guilt Perseus," Zeus spoke loudly. "But we will not be fooled. We know that you killed your own half-brother. We have evidence."

Percy looked at the gods in disbelief. "What evidence?"

"On your bed," Zeus continued. "Gloves to hide the evidence and a sword. One of the rarest swords made only from Olympus. It is an unforgivable crime to use it to someone. It will poison anyone and will kill-"

"What sword?"

"Do not interrupt me Perseus. Or lie to us either!" Zeus thundered angrily.

"I'm not lying!" Percy yelled back. "Hook me up to a lie detector don't you!"

Zeus looked at the angry demigod in front of him, and sighed.

"Very well, Athena will you please get the lie detector in the storage?"

Athena did as asked, and a few seconds later, Percy had been questioned.

"Have you killed your half-brother?" Zeus asked wearily.

"No," Percy answered truthfully.

A loud beeping noise went off like a huge siren. All the demigods in Camp Half Blood looked surprised and shocked. Percy looked at the machine in confusion.

"We need one last thing for your punishment," Zeus concluded. "All in favor for Perseus Jackson to go to Tartarus?"

Percy's eyes landed on almost every single demigod that he had fought alongside him in the Titan War. No reaction came out of any of them. All of them except for Annabeth. She looked at him in anger, and a slightest hint of fear. He looked down at his sneakers that seemed interesting to him at the moment. He hated to see his girlfriend look at him that way.

"Well?" Zeus boomed in his ridiculously loud voice of his. "All in favor for the demigods?"

Percy looked around, and immediately felt betrayed. Hands rose up, and campers he didn't even know raised their hands. But that wasn't important to him. He looked at Annabeth. She raised her hand, not that high, so that she couldn't be noticed. But to him, her hand, her vote for him to go to Tartarus was the most painful betrayal of all. Thankfully, his cousins didn't put their hands up. Instead they looked at the architect of Olympus like they wanted to chop her hand off.

Zeus made a mental count in his head of the estimated count.

"And all in favor for the gods?" Zeus asked.

Percy skimmed his eyes around the circle of the gods. Apollo, Hestia, Aphrodite, Hermes, and surprisingly Artemis and Hades raised their hands for him not to go to Tartarus. The others kept their hands to their selves. He felt as if someone stabbed him in the chest when he saw that Poseidon hadn't put his hand up.

"Alright then," Zeus was speaking again, and Percy was getting sick of hearing his voice. "Hades transport him to Tartarus and come back here immediately."

"No I will not," Hades said firmly. "If you had seen my hand go up, you will know that I will not do it."

"Fine then," Zeus said through gritted teeth. "Ares please escort him to Tartarus, and come back here immediately."

Ares nodded, and looked pleased and scared at the same time. Percy glared at all of them, and then spoke in a cold voice.

"If any one of you had taken a closer look at the lie detector, you would know that it was cursed by our one and only Athena," Percy said with so much coldness, the people who voted for his banishment flinched. "One day I will return. And every single one of you will regret ever banishing me in the first place."

And before Thalia and Nico could grab Percy's arm and run away, Ares marched up to him, held onto his arm, and teleported him to the huge pit. The god of war then proceeded to teleport to camp immediately.

"Come here hero," a chuckling cold voice spoke.

"Fine then," Percy said while uncapping his pen which had returned to him after someone had attempted to confiscate it. "I will."

And with that, Percy slid into the bottomless pit, and what seemed like to be forever, he finally reached the bottom. Golden eyes and a whole army stood before the Titan.

"How do you like your new home?" Kronos spoke with an ancient voice and gestured all around him. "So, _so_ friendly isn't it?"

Percy shivered as Kronos looked at him with what seemed to be his best glare.

"But apparently," Kronos continued. "The people in here aren't."

And with that happy note, Kronos made some hand gestures, and all the banished titans stepped forward.

"And they would be happy to torture you to make your life filled with happiness."

Percy wondered when and how the Titan lord had a sense of humor. He didn't wonder for long however, and two knives that popped out of nowhere had lodged themselves right into the ground. Right into the palm of his hands. He screamed in pain as Kronos began taking out a poisoned knife and digging and carving letters into his arm. And that was only the beginning.

**A/N: I wanted to make a fic of where Percy was in, and out of Tartarus. I think I got some facts wrong, but it fits in with the story. Chapters will be longer later. Hope you enjoyed reading the prologue!**


	2. Admitting the Truth

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 1

The letters were torture. They kept on burning and flashing white when it made contact into Percy's skin. He tried to close his eyes and open them whenever it did; trying to ease the pain, but it didn't work. Whenever he tried to do that, he saw Kronos's laughing face chuckling in the darkness. He shivered, which didn't help through all the agony he felt.

"Pathetic," Kronos sneered.

Percy stayed silent, but couldn't prevent a bloodcurdling scream when it made contact again. The skin crackled and sizzled as the after effects. And then he did the most stupid thing he'd ever done.

"You know I could do this in a tattoo parlor right?" Percy asked as he gasped between short breaths of pain.

Kronos only chuckled darkly. "You see that's the difference," he said, leaning in closely while continuing the work. "In a tattoo parlor, you can always remove it."

Kronos waited a moment while etching one more letter that Percy could unidentify. He could swear the Titan lord did it even more fiercely. He could only cry out and do nothing. He was useless. Pathetic. And nothing more than a coward. The Titan lord had already made the savior of Olympus's will to survive break.

"While this," Kronos continued and gestured towards the words he was working on. "Cannot be removed at all."

Percy's eyes closed at the new discovery he had made. He tried to tug away his arm when he thought Kronos was focused but that only made matters worse. Much worse. The searing hot object the Titan lord was using scratched alongside his skin and made a huge unnecessary cut line through the middle of his forearm. He screamed again, and closed his eyes, trying to believe that this was a nightmare, and he would wake up.

It seemed like Kronos read Percy's mind.

"This is a nightmare," Kronos whispered into Percy's ear. "Except you won't wake up."

Percy ignored the Titan lord and focused on anywhere else. Anywhere. Just not on the pain. The betrayal. Especially Annabeth's... _How could she think that?__  
_  
The betrayal let Percy's mind wander off somewhere else, which was good since the letters were only halfway done. He snapped back to reality when one of the banished titans banged the two knives that were lodged in his hands.

"You really need to pay attention!" The Titan yelled.

Percy could hear all the monsters, even the idiotic laugh of Echidna, a surprisingly fast reformed Medusa, and others. He could hear them laughing. Chuckling. Complaining that they couldn't torture him. It was a sick and twisted world. He had to face reality. All of Kronos's banished army stood there at the sidelines, cheering their master on. Instead of throwing rotten food that he'd seen people do in the movies do, they threw weapons. All sort of weapons came flying at him: knives, arrows, spears, guns, anything you can think of. They either had surprisingly bad aim, or he was very, very lucky.

The two knives that were stuck in Percy's hand moved around, and he bit his lip to prevent screaming out to give them the satisfaction. The two knives made the hole even bloodier. Blood was streaming out, and he nearly collapsed from the blood loss. But of course his neighbors in Tartarus wouldn't let him. So he tried to stay conscious to avoid any more pain. But it only made the pain worse.

"Don't worry little hero," Kronos spat out with venom. "And if you're wondering when it's going to stop, I'll tell you this. I'm never going to stop. You're going to stay here for eternity, and I'll be perfectly happy to make the rest of your life hell."

Percy could only whimper as tears streamed down his cheeks. He couldn't believe this was happening. He couldn't believe he was really here. In Tartarus. With Kronos and all of his banished army. The Titan lord was right. No matter how hard he tried to believe it, this was a nightmare. One he couldn't wake up from. Because this wasn't just any nightmare. This was reality. And a nightmarish reality was worse than a nightmarish dream.

"And guess what?" Kronos continued on. "I'm not only going to make your life hell. My friends are going to join me. Aren't you?"

Kronos looked at his army as all of them cheered in response. All around the titan lord stood cheering monsters. Titans. Even giants. They all cheered to see Percy getting tortured. It was sick and evil. Their rotten black and yellow teeth stood out more than the whitest teeth. It was revolting.

Percy could only stare at Kronos's golden eyes and he flinched at all the cruelness and bloodthirstiness he saw. He couldn't help it. More pain or not. He didn't care. All he wanted was to go home. But he couldn't. So he settled for the next best thing: unconsciousness...

**In Camp Half Blood: ****  
**  
Thalia and Nico could only watch as their cousin Percy was teleported away. Inside their heads, a thousand curses they never said to the gods were said yelled.

"We'll visit him," Nico promised Thalia. "I'll bring you there."

Thalia could only nod like a robot. She couldn't believe Percy was really gone. And then she became angry.

"He didn't kill his brother!" Thalia shouted as she took out her spear and charged at her father, who looked very surprised. "You damn good for nothing piece of shit! He saved Olympus and this is how you treat him?"

The rest of the gods watched in silence. They couldn't do anything about it. It was their battle to fight. Father to daughter. No one could interfere.

"The lie detector detected-" Zeus started, and could only defend himself, as Thalia struck her father with her electrical spear, which charged more electricity than ever.

"You didn't even hear him damn it!" Thalia shouted angrily as a few tears escaped her eye. She didn't bother wiping them away. There was no point. "You didn't hear him at all! You didn't even look at the lie detector's aura, and noticed that Athena did something to it!"

Zeus looked startled, and skimmed his eyes over to the gods. He saw Athena, who for some reason was looking down.

"Athena?" Artemis asked her favorite sister. "Did you really?"

Athena shook her head. "No I did not. The sea scum accuses me of such a thing and you believe him?"

But Artemis didn't have time to solve any riddles or tricks that Athena was playing. She didn't even have time to attempt to calm down Thalia, who was glaring at the goddess of wisdom with anger evident in her eyes. She looked over to Apollo instead; he was the god of truth. He sighed and closed his eyes. In surprise, he stumbled back and tripped over a tree root.

"Yes," Apollo said quietly in shock. "She cursed it. Percy was banished to Tartarus for no reason at all."

"And you didn't bother to check this when Percy was banished?" Thalia shouted at Apollo.

Apollo stared at Thalia, and she remembered that he had voted for Percy to remain on Earth. Her gaze softened a tiny bit, and he just nodded at her, accepting her silent, unusual apology.

Nico remained silent. Artemis looked back at Athena who now looked guilty. Apollo glared at her with hatred, which was unusual since he was usually cheerful.

"Why?" Artemis could only whisper in shock, and for the first time, distrust towards her own half-sister.

There was a moment of silence, and finally Athena spoke up, though un-reluctant to speak. But seeing all the pairs of eyes towards her, she sighed and began.

"It was the perfect chance," Athena finally began speaking, and even though it was quiet, everyone could hear it clearly. "I knew it was the perfect chance to get rid of two of Poseidon's children at the same time. So I killed him with the sword, and made the lie detector beep when Perseus said that he didn't kill him."

It wasn't like Athena to confess something. Her pride usually didn't let her. But now, there was no other choice. And she did it. She confessed everything. And people began hating her for it.

And that was when Thalia turned to face the goddess of wisdom. Her eyes were a startling, menacing ice cold blue. She glared at Athena with those blue eyes with so much hatred; she wished she had a mirror to see her glare.

"It was you," Thalia said with poisonous venom in her voice. "You killed Poseidon's son, my cousin's half brother, and banished Percy to Tartarus. It was you all along."

Athena was about to retort angrily, but Thalia cut her off with more anger than the goddess could ever manage.

"I'm ashamed of you. I respected you. I even looked up to you. All of you. And now I just figured out that you were just a cold hearted bitch all along!" Thalia was working up her anger now. All that rage made the weather stormy. Dark storm clouds with lightning swirled around the cabin of the goddess of wisdom as if planning to destroy it. "And you Poseidon. Annabeth. And all those damn campers and gods who voted for Percy's banishment. How could you believe he killed his half-brother? He loved his half-brother unlike some of you. Especially Athena."

Thalia ended her very long speech there, turning around quickly as if she was a deadly assassin ready to kill. Nico placed his hand on her shoulder, which proved to be hard since she was taller than him. She thought he would ask her to calm down, but he didn't. And she was glad for that.

"Percy's fatal flaw was loyalty. He would sacrifice his life for his friends, family, and even enemies. And to all of you damn people who voted for his banishment, I just wanted to do this."

Thalia turned around to see Nico sticking out his middle finger at everyone who voted for Percy's banishment. He glared at all of them, but saved all the hatred he had built up since his silence towards the gods.

"Screw you. Screw all of you. Hope your burn in hell." Nico's words were spoken with a hint of Italian. His words were soft, but cold at the same time.

The area got cold, and wind and lightning struck at least two times every ten seconds. And after seeing all their reactions, Nico shadow travelled Thalia and himself away to an unknown location that even he didn't know.

Even though Thalia was kind of used to it, she still stumbled around like she was still surrounded by darkness.

"It's ok Thalia," Nico said, and then sat down on the ground and sighed loudly.

After Thalia closed her eyes and opened them again, she sat down by Nico, who hung his head low. His hair hung loose, covering his entire face.

"We did the right thing," Thalia said firmly. "Don't ever think we did something wrong. They deserved it. They all did."

"Even the ones who remained loyal to Percy?" Nico asked sadly.

"No. Not them. I bet they're all shouting at the others. I don't even care anymore."

Thalia placed her head in her lap, and Nico did the same instead of comforting her. She needed the time to grieve. They both did.

Nico stood up shakily, and Thalia looked at him curiously.

"Where are you going?" Thalia asked.

"Where can I go?" Nico replied back with another question.

Thalia looked straight into Nico's eyes without flinching. She then proceeded to look down at the ground and stayed quiet for a long time. He pretended to wait patiently but he was feeling impatient and churned up inside. _What if she said no?__  
_  
"You know what?" Thalia asked, standing up and brushing her jeans. "Fine."

"Really?" Nico asked.

"Don't make me change my mind."

Nico stared at Thalia with a small smile on his face. "You ready?"

Thalia stared back at Nico without smiling. "Yeah."

"Ok then," Nico said while holding Thalia's hand tightly. "Let's go visit Percy in Tartarus."  
**  
****A/N: Hope this is as good as the summary and the prologue say it is. One very important question: do any of you want Percy to date anyone? Not Annabeth. I usually don't do romance but I'm just asking. Thank you for all the reviews, threats, and all the other support!****Mythomagic-Champion: Yes he has a half-brother, but I just made him up for the story.****  
**


	3. Visits and Drowning

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians******

Chapter 2

Using the energy Nico still had, he shadow traveled both him and Thalia to the living hell: Tartarus. He didn't know what to think when they arrived. He didn't even know what to do.

"Where do you think he is?" Thalia asked Nico, while looking around, trying to find Percy in the large open space.

Nico pointed to a large pit that stood out, camouflaged by its darkness. Even though he was the son of Hades, Tartarus freaked him out. It freaked almost everyone out. And to think Percy had to live there for gods know how long. He knew that if he had to be in there, he would have already killed himself. He admired his cousin for not doing any suicide.

"In there," Nico said with worry and nervousness.

Thalia looked inside the pit while trying her hardest not to fall in. She regretted it when a loud, agonizing scream was heard. She nearly toppled in, but Nico pulled her back up. She hoped that maybe it was someone else's scream, but it wasn't. It was Percy's. She could identify the voice anywhere. And she wished that it was because something happy had happened. A scream of happiness. But she could hear how painful it sounded. So heartbroken and filled with betrayal and angst. So, _so_, painful.

"That's him isn't it?" Thalia said, as she walked backwards, away from the pit. "It's the first day and he's already..."

Thalia didn't finish her sentence. It was all Athena's fault. Athena's fault for creating Annabeth for betrayal. To curse that lie detector. To put the evidence on Percy's bed. It was all her damn fault. And she hated the goddess for it.

"You want to go talk to him?" Nico asked Thalia, not looking at her straight in the eyes.

Thalia didn't want to answer. The painful scream rang out clear in her mind. She was being a coward. She felt pathetic.

"He won't hear me," Thalia said, ashamed of herself.

"Try. That's what we're here for, remember? We have to."

Thalia wanted to talk so badly. She wanted to tell Percy that everything was alright. He was her cousin, best friend. And her only friend in Tartarus. But she couldn't. Her throat was too dry. She couldn't speak. She didn't know what to say. No words came out, and she felt like a mute; not being able to speak. And right there and then, she felt useless, coming all the way here and not doing anything.

"I'll talk first then," Nico replied to his own answer.

But that didn't work out that well. When Nico tried to talk, his throat was too dry. Just like Thalia. He felt like a coward, running away from what he didn't even start. And then another scream was heard. A scream and a laugh. Kronos's laugh. He was torturing him with happiness. It was sick.

They knew it of course. The two cousins knew Tartarus was hell. But how could Percy go there? He was innocent. Yet here he was, screaming in agony. And it terrified Nico. This was his big brother. Big cousin, but it felt like he was a big brother. Out of everything; saving Olympus, getting Zeus's lightning bolt, saving Grover, saving camp, everything he had done. He ended up getting betrayed by some gods, his own girlfriend and friends. No one deserved that punishment. And especially not Percy Jackson. He deserved better. Not this.

"Percy?" Thalia's loud voice startled Nico. "You there?"

The cousins expected Percy to answer with perhaps a sarcastic comment. Although their hopes were low. They were expecting at least an answer. They didn't expect someone else to answer.

"What's this?" A cold deep voice answered. "Annabeth has come?"

_What the hell?_ Thalia thought. _How could Kronos compare me to Annabeth? And where's Percy?_

"Why you bast-" Percy interrupted with an angry voice.

_There he is,_ Thalia thought with pride. Nico could almost laugh at Percy's reply. Almost. But not quite.

"You know what to do," Kronos's voice sounded bored.

_Know what?_ Thalia thought. A fling could be echoed all around the pit. Monsters jeered, and another yell of pain. Thalia glared at the pit angrily. Lightning swirled around her and she resisted the urge to zap the pit. What if she hit the wrong person? What if she hit Percy by accident?

"Percy," Thalia tried again, calming down by one percent. "It's us Thalia and Nico."

Deep down inside the pit, Percy couldn't feel a bit of hope rising. His cousins were here? But just as his hope was rising, Kronos crushed that tiny spark of hope in tiny little bits.

"Why have you come?" Kronos asked coldly.

To free Percy and to kill the stupid Titan lord who is just a coward who lost in the war, Thalia wanted to say. But all that was a lie. She couldn't free her cousin.

"We want to see Percy," Thalia demanded fiercely.

"Thalia," Nico whispered in her ear quietly. "We can't see him. Unless he tries and climbs out of the pit. Or if there's and elevator. But that's impossible."

Thalia stayed silent, as she waited for Percy to talk. He didn't. The only person she heard talking was Nico.

"Unless," Nico continued with a thinking face on. "Hermes. Flying shoes."

Thalia shook her head. It would never work. She might as well ask Zeus to release him, which was impossible.

"We'll just have to talk to him like this," Thalia sighed. "Kronos shut your mouth and let Percy talk himself."

Nico had to admit, Thalia had more guts than him. But he was afraid. Afraid of what Kronos would do to Percy.

"I'll give you a choice," Kronos finally said. "A choice that Perseus has to choose."

Thalia was waiting for Percy to yell 'my name's Percy, not Perseus,' but the pit stayed silent for a while. And she got nervous. What was the choice?

"Perseus, you can talk to your cousins for... Five minutes. No interruptions. But then you'll suffer more. Or, you could tell them to go away, and you'll endure less suffering."

Nico and Thalia froze. This was what Percy had to do? Bargain for everyday comforts? Kronos was a sick, cruel Titan. Even the gods couldn't steep as low as this. _Oh wait,_ the daughter of Zeus thought angrily. _They could._

"Tell us to go away!" Nico yelled to the pit, desperately hoping that Percy wouldn't choose the five minute option.

This was not what Nico was expecting. But then again, what was he expecting anyway? A friendly Kronos allowing Percy to come and talk?

"We won't give you a choice Percy. Look we're walking away slowly," Thalia said while inching back step by step.

Thalia knew Percy was going to do something stupid. She could already hear the 'no hesitation' tone come on.

"Talk to my cousins for five minutes," Percy's voice rang clear throughout the pit.

Thalia closed her eyes. She was honored that Percy chose the five minutes over the less suffering, but it was a stupid decision. Nico seemed to be thinking the same thoughts.

"You can't walk away now," Kronos said. "Or else your cousin will be tortured for nothing."

Thalia walked forwards again towards the pit slowly. Nico followed her, just incase she fell and slid down into the pit. He knew she wasn't stupid but you never know...

"He's right," Thalia sighed.

"I'll be off," Kronos said, and everyone could hear the echoes of footsteps.

And then heavy marching. The whole army walked away with Kronos in the lead. It took two minutes, and the two cousins were worried that they only had three minutes left.

"Five minutes starts now," Kronos chuckled darkly.

At least Kronos was slightly fair. Percy didn't know what to do. He couldn't believe his cousins were actually here. But then again, he couldn't believe what had happened either.

"They know Perce," Nico didn't have to speak loudly to be heard. Everyone could hear his voice clearly through the echoes. "They know the truth now."

"And?" Percy asked eagerly.

"Well Thalia yelled at Athena, and a few other people."

A laugh that did not belong to Kronos was heard. It was Percy's. And the cousins knew that once they were gone, they would miss him already.

"I miss you Perce," Thalia admitted. "Next time I see any people who betrayed you, I'm going to kick their ass."

"I'm sure they'll appreciate that."

"Oh they will."

The pit stayed eerily quiet, but Percy didn't want to waste any seconds to not talk to his cousins. He didn't know how many minutes had passed. He didn't care. Just as long as he was near his cousins, he was fine.

"When do you think I'll be released? Now that they know the truth won't they get me out of here?" Percy asked with false hope.

"We'll ask next time we see them," Nico replied, a hint of excitement that maybe Percy could get out tomorrow.

Thalia stayed silent as her cousins talked about Percy's freedom. The truth was, she knew when he was going to get released. She knew and she didn't tell.

"Have you told mom yet?"

"Do you want us too?"

The pit was silent for a while. Until marching came in. Loud noises that could be anything were heard. And before Percy could even say the answer quickly, talking was heard.

"Your time is up," Kronos spoke.

"No!" Thalia yelled.

Nico took hold of Thalia's arm. "We have to go."

Thalia took her arm out of Nico's. "We can't!"

"I'm kind of breaking the law of Hades by coming here."

And before Thalia could reply, Nico held on to her jacket and shadow traveled them out.

"Let me go," Thalia demanded once they were out.

Nico obliged, and Thalia went to sit down on the ground.

"Sorry Thals, it's just that..." Nico trailed off his sentence.

"It's too painful?" Thalia suggested.

Nico nodded, and Thalia just sighed.

"We should ask the gods when he's coming back," Nico finally said.

"Two years," Thalia said with her head down. "He'll be released in two years. He will be gained immortality, to suffer for two years. Then when he's released, he'll age normally again. He can't be released."

Nico stared at Thalia. "How do you know this?"

"I overheard a conversation."

"Why didn't you tell Percy?"

"They made me swear on the River Styx. If I didn't, they threatened to make it ten years. I didn't want that."

"We'll all be the same age. I'll be sixteen, you'll be sixteen, and he'll be sixteen."

Thalia was startled at the realization. She would always be sixteen. Percy would stay sixteen for two years. And Nico would age normally to be sixteen. She liked the ages just as they were. Her cousin in Tartarus affected more than it should have.

**In Tartarus:**

"How did your little chat go?" Kronos asked Percy with fake friendliness.

_Well you just ruined it,_ Percy thought bitterly.

"It was good," Percy replied, wanting to say what he really thought.

"Good. I hope you enjoyed that because I'm sure that you'll find even more enjoyment here."

Percy didn't even have time to think. Kronos made a gesture, and some monsters brought a huge tank filled with water in. He was about to say that he could breathe underwater, when he decided against it. What was the point anyway? It was better off that they didn't know.

Percy's head was dunked in the tank. His water powers didn't work. He couldn't breathe at all. He did at first, thinking that he could, but his lungs were instantly filled with water. His eyes widened in shock and surprise. He struggled and kicked the tank, but it didn't even budge an inch. And for the first time in his life, he experienced what it was like to not breathe in the water. What it was like to drown.  
**  
****A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. And on the last chapter, I talked about the romance thing. I decided something. No romance. And I'll tell you why.******

**Romance Problem: First of all, after being betrayed, I don't think you would date again. However, I could do a really good best friend. But no romance.******

**Really sorry for mentioning it last chapter, I didn't really think. I know that some people will be disappointed but this is my opinion and I don't think I will change it. But thank you for all the support!**


	4. Abandonment

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 3

Percy's lungs were on fire. He needed air. Oxygen. Was this what it was like to drown? Was this how it felt like? He kicked the huge tank with as much force as he could muster. He didn't know what he wanted to achieve, but he kicked anyway. His hands were bound by heavy ropes and chains, so he couldn't do anything about that. Not that he wanted to. All he wanted was to get air.

All around Percy, laughing was heard. It was like the sidelines were supporting him to drown. And it was working. Bit by bit, his mind was about to shut down. But the titans couldn't let their precious plaything, die could they? No they couldn't. Kronos pulled him up fiercely, and he gasped, his entire face wet.

Percy breathed in as much air as he could without trying to hyperventilate. He could be the perfect lifeguard that saved everyone. He never knew what he should do to himself, knowing that he couldn't drown. He learned the lesson the hard way. As he was breathing in oxygen that filled up his lungs, he spitted out water in his body. Water came spilling out, and it felt like he was puking it all out. Water dripped out from his mouth quickly. Little droplets quickly formed a huge puddle on the ground.

"That was fun," Kronos said cruelly. "Let's do it again."

No! Percy wanted to scream out loud, but before he could even have another breath of air, his head was dunked in the tank again. His lungs screamed for air, while the army behind him screamed with glee and laughter. Insanity. There was insanity all around him. And slowly, eventually, he might become insane himself. Slowly. Step by step.

"That's enough," Kronos ordered. "We'll do the rest tomorrow."

_The rest?_ Percy questioned mentally as he was thrown on the ground roughly. His hands were still shackled together, but his feet were free. But his lungs weren't as lucky as his feet. They were still full of water. It invaded his mind. What was once his most powerful element was now his downfall. And he couldn't let that happen. He had to escape somehow. But he didn't know where to start. And if you didn't know where to start, you don't know where it ends either.

"The rest of the water of course," Kronos corrected. "That was just the beginning."

This can't be happening, Percy thought as his shoulders sagged. He was grabbed by the ropes on his wrists and dragged to the massive open space. He was still coughing up bits of water, and the army around him smiled with their crooked black and yellow teeth. Basically, they smiled like insane psychos, who wanted revenge in the worst possible way.

Kronos made a hand gesture, and one of the Cyclopes handed him a sort of metal carving object. Percy took one look at it and closed his eyes. _No. Please, gods, no..._

"Yes," Kronos said as if he could read minds.

Percy shut his eyes tightly, as Kronos dipped the metal in a bucket of liquid. He could hear it sizzling already. The Titan lord held the son of Poseidon's arm and pressed the metal on his arm with force so hard, that he wouldn't be surprised if it cut down all the way to his bone.

Percy closed his eyes while withering in pain as his screams filled the air. Kronos had an insane look in his eye and he took the metal, and making sure the liquid was dripping, he flicked it at the demigod's eye.

"You don't know the real pain yet," Kronos said coldly. He flicked the droplets of liquid in his other eye. "This. This is pain."

"I get it," Percy said, his voice cracking. "You can let me go now."

"Foolish demigod. Do you think that's what I want? To let you understand what it's like to feel pain?" Kronos said harshly. "I'm going to let you suffer. Just like I suffered."

"Revenge," Percy whispered.

"Retribution. Vendetta. Revenge. Vengeance." Kronos replied, and stayed silent before uttering one last word. "Justice."

**In Olympus, with Thalia and Nico:****  
**  
"Bullshit," Thalia muttered angrily.

A meeting in the throne room for all the head counselors and all the gods was held in Olympus. The topic was about Percy. Just like the previous one. Nico looked at Thalia and she nodded at him.

"We saw Percy," Nico admitted while glaring at everyone. "We heard how much he suffered."

Annabeth looked at the two cousins with surprise on her face. Then she looked down. If she hadn't voted for Percy's banishment, they would have asked her if she wanted to tag along. But they didn't. And she hated herself for doing what she did.

Zeus got red in the face. "You cannot visit people in Tartarus! That is against the-"

Nico stopped him with a stare. "Then why aren't we in Hades's prison? If it is against the law, then why are we still here?"

Zeus turned to Hades. "You must know that it is illegal for them-"

Once again, the leader of the gods was cut off. This time by Hades. "I fully understand, brother. And yet, it is my domain. I decided who gets thrown in prison or not."

"Do you know how much he suffers?" Thalia asked, looking around at all the guilty people with anger on her face. "How much the screaming is? Did you know that he got a choice to either talk five minutes to us and suffer more, or not talk five minutes to us and suffer less?"

"And that little punk chose less suffering right?" Ares said, making some people flinch at the consequences he was going to have.

"No!" Thalia shouted loudly. "He chose the five minute option you bastard!"

And before anyone could even talk, Thalia had out her electric spear. She charged up huge amounts of volts right on it and threw it right at Ares. Bulls eye. It hit him right in the stomach. Then she took out her bow and started firing arrow after arrow towards the war god like she was practicing to shoot bulls eye. The war god sunk to his knees on the floor. Golden ichor was pouring out like a heavenly waterfall.

"Thalia!" Zeus yelled in anger at his daughter. "Stop!"

Thalia stopped one second of firing to look at Zeus. "No," she said calmly, while cold at the same time.

Artemis looked at her lieutenant, and placed a hand on Thalia's shoulder. She didn't know what to think. On one hand she was proud of her, and on the other hand, she knew her lieutenant had to stop. She shook her head, and finally the daughter of Zeus sighed. She fired one last arrow, and Zeus stormed up to her angrily. And without even speaking to her, he slapped her right in the face.

"That's enough!" Zeus thundered while looking down on his daughter.

The entire throne room was silent while they processed what they had just seen. The king of the gods just slapped his daughter.

"I was just stopping," Thalia muttered, looking Zeus straight in the eyes.

"Apollo, heal him," Zeus commanded, and Apollo aided the injured war god reluctantly.

Nico had to whistle at all the damage done. Ares was hurt pretty bad, wounds that were trying to heal didn't even close up. He looked at Thalia and saw that her cheek was red and sore. Anger built and soon, he had his Stygian ice sword out. If Zeus slapped her one more time, he was ready to kill.

"No daughter of mine would do that!" Zeus yelled, ignoring the sword pointing his way dangerously.

Thalia didn't even flinch. "Then I'm not your daughter."

Whispers and several gasps could be heard all around the throne room. Annabeth stared at her friend... No camper. She wasn't her friend anymore, no matter how she wanted it to be. She stared at Thalia with pride, but knew that nothing would ever be the same.

"Even if you say you're not the father Zeus," Athena told them both. "Thalia is still half of you. The only thing you can do is say you're not her father."

"So be it," Zeus rumbled with fury. "I Zeus will hereby-"

"Cut the crap," Thalia cut him off. "I'm not your daughter anymore."

And then Thalia walked out of her room, taking her spear from Ares first. Nico hurried to join her, and she smiled gratefully at him. He nodded at her, and together, they walked out of the throne room, entering the elevator with the awful music.

"Good for you, you're finally becoming independent," Zeus boomed angrily at Thalia's back.

Thalia acted like she didn't hear him, but the truth was, she didn't care. Zeus was acting childish, in a bad way. Gods and demigods were looking at him disapprovingly.

"That was a bad mistake," Artemis said to Zeus while staring at him with those silver eyes of hers. "Why?"

Hestia looked at her brother who saved them all from Kronos's stomach. When Zeus looked at her, she just shook her head and sighed. Those were the same reactions from the people in the room.

"It was your daughter," Hera spoke up, and Zeus looked at his wife. "I didn't like her. But you shouldn't have abandoned her like that."

"This all started because of Perseus," Zeus shouted. "Let's see how injured he really is shall we?"

And with just a wave of Zeus's hand, a screen appeared of Tartarus. Many people flinched, seeing the huge pit. Some guilty people were thinking deeply. This is what they had sent Percy to?

"See?" Zeus argued to a nonexistent Thalia. "We cannot hear-"

As if on cue, a scream was heard. And then talking. A cold, harsh voice was heard.

"You don't know the real pain yet," Kronos said coldly. "This. This is pain."

Annabeth paled and closed her eyes as she heard another scream. This is what she had been part of? His fatal flaw was loyalty, and this is how she repaid him? He had given her everything, his life, his loyalty, treating her like a princess. And yet here and now, she knew she could never be forgiven.

"I get it," Percy said, his voice cracking. "You can let me go now."

Percy's voice. A bit of hope that he was at least alive. And he still had his sense of humor too. Zeus was starting to think that the demigod was just acting. And then the next sentence came, and his thoughts came crashing down on him.

"Foolish demigod. Do you think that's what I want? To let you understand what it's like to feel pain?" Kronos said harshly. "I'm going to let you suffer. Just like I suffered."

Hestia stopped tending the hearth to listen to what Kronos had to say. Her entire body lit on fire, and almost everyone jumped. She ignored them as a lone tear made way towards her cheek. _Why do good people always have a bad ending?__  
_  
"Revenge," Percy whispered.

"The boy seeks revenge," Zeus started to say, but an arrow nearly impaled his head the moment after he said it.

Zeus looked around to see who had fired it. Apollo. Artemis looked at her brother in surprise. Apollo was currently glaring at the king of the gods.

"Don't say that," Apollo whispered.

"Retribution. Vendetta. Revenge. Vengeance." Kronos replied, and stayed silent before uttering the one last word. "Justice."

"This is what you have done Athena," Hermes said quietly. "This is what you have done to the hero of Olympus. You've taken the rivalry too far. And for what? Just because he dated your daughter? Just because he was the son of the person you hate?"

"I confessed," Athena snapped. "Don't expect anything more."

"But it's not enough," Artemis snapped back.

"You hate men and now you're sticking up for one?" The goddess of wisdom retorted.

"He was different. I do not hate him. But I do not love him either. I merely respect him."

"You are the goddess of wisdom," Apollo said, aiding his sister. "And yet you are not acting wise."

"You are the god of medicine. And yet you have not healed Ares that well," Athena played her last desperate card. She would not face defeat.

"Don't change the subject Athena!" Poseidon roared.

Athena finally turned to face Poseidon, who had stayed silent until now.

"You act so angry," Athena spoke. "And yet you were one of the gods who voted for his banishment."

"For Percy's sake Athena! Don't you have any mercy?"

"I see your friends want to check up on you Perseus," a voice spoke.

They had all forgotten that the screen was still on. Kronos was looking at them all with a cruel amusement in his eyes.

"Do you want to see them?" Kronos spoke again.

A rustle was heard and then a person came on view. Percy Jackson looked at all of them with hurt in his eyes. And almost every single person who had banished him for murder stared back at him with guilt.

**A/N: Hope this chapter was long and good enough for you people. If you have any ideas or suggestions, you're welcome to tell them. Thanks for all the support!******

**Reading-is-4-life: Sorry, but there is going to be no Thalia/Nico pairing. She's still in the hunters of Artemis unless she's going to quit, but even if she does, it might not be about love.******

**Anonymous: No romance between Percy, sorry. And I usually don't use OC's, the only OC I have in this story is his half-brother, but he's dead.**


	5. Chats happening in Tartarus and Olympus

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 4

Percy looked at the screen to find out that the gods and demigods were watching him. A flash of hurt passed in his eyes and the other stared back in guilt. He searched around the Throne Room even if he wasn't there. He was looking for someone, they could tell. But who was he searching for? They got their answer later, once he began speaking.

"Where are Thalia and Nico?" Were the first words that came out of Percy's mouth.

Zeus recovered from his shock after a few moments. "You do not bow before me boy? You do not respect-"

Zeus was cut off by Percy. And he was mad. His face that once showed betrayal now scrunched up in anger. A light earthquake soon followed after. But as soon as it came, it was gone, leaving everyone wondering what had happened.

"Oh I'm _very _sorry indeed," Percy apologized with heavy sarcasm. "I would _love_ to bow to you at the moment my _dearest_ lord of the skies, but as you can see with your _brilliant_ eyesight, I'm a bit _occupied_ at the moment so if you would _please_ excuse me and my _dreadful_ manners..."

The screen turned blank, but then turned back on again, this time on a different angle. Everyone could now see Percy. Not just his face, but also the rest of him. And it was not a pretty sight to see. Letters were carved in his arms, but still, the letters could not yet form words. They were still unreadable. The letters were carved deep. So deep that it was cut right down to the bone. That was Kronos's intention. The letters weren't supposed to show in red for blood. It showed in white, for the bones.

Percy's face was wet, showing that he had taken a little dip in the pool perhaps? No. Everyone could see that his little dip in the pool had been drowning. There were no clear signs but it seemed like it. But that wasn't possible... He was the son of Poseidon, he wasn't supposed to drown. That was one of the peaks of being the son of Poseidon wasn't it? To not drown? Those words rang out in everyone's minds as they looked at him.

"You better believe it," Kronos sneered at them before snapping his fingers.

Percy, even though he was in there for gods know how long, he knew what the gesture meant. The tank. The water tank that could drown him. _No. Not again...__  
_  
And while Percy was thinking about what to do, the others suddenly understood why he was 'occupied.' His ankles were shackled with spikes coming in from the inside. It wasn't from the outside, where it should have been. Kronos had found a way to turn those shackles into the opposite way, making his ankles bleed as the spikes dug into them deeply. And even now, blood was flowing out like a waterfall that only vampires would love to drink.

And then there were Percy's hands. Kronos had gotten more 'creative.' Instead of using knives, he used a bow to fire two arrows that would lodge themselves in his hands like a bulls eyes. It worked. But the blood didn't show in the front. Instead, you could see droplets of blood surrounding him like a pool from the back. Dried blood and new blood mixed together and it formed a sticky liquid that would take a janitor a few hours to clean up. But since there was no janitor, the sticky red liquid remained on the floor, still mixing the blood together.

Athena, the headstrong goddess of wisdom, felt a flash of guilt. Was this what she had sent her rival's son to? Tartarus? And for the first time, she felt remorse. She never felt that feeling before. And that made it ten times worse than it already was. She looked at the boy who had been banished for nothing. All the blood made the regret worse. She couldn't stand it, but she kept on watching.

A loud screeching noise made everyone jump. Athena watched, with her analyzing grey eyes what had happened. A large tank filled with water on wheels came whizzing towards Percy. It rolled over him, but he just grunted in pain. He wouldn't give them any satisfaction for his screams. Kronos pulled the tank back over him and took the arrows and shackles off. Blood splattered everywhere as his chains were removed. If there had been a white wall behind them, it would have been painted with little red dots sprayed all around like a rainbow with only one color.

Athena stared at the savior of Olympus, son of _Poseidon_ in shock. Emphasis on _Poseidon_. _Percy couldn't drown,_ she reassured herself. But when his face was forced in the water, she thought otherwise. If he could scream underwater, he definitely was. He was kicking the tank in desperate hope that it might tip over. But things never worked his way. She could see his face clearly in the water. It was one of desperation. She checked again, making sure that no other features showed in his face. She was searching for determination and hope. She found none.

Poseidon wanted to laugh in Kronos's stupid face. Percy can't drown! He knew that for a fact. He wanted his son to prove everyone wrong as his face was tipped in the water for the first time. And the savior of Olympus actually did prove everyone wrong. He was starting to drown. His confident smile started to slip of the god's face. His son couldn't drown. _No. This couldn't be happening. This couldn't be happening..._

The campers in the throne room watched in true horror as they watched their hero drown. Regrets... Guilt... Remorse... Feelings spread around like a deadly disease. And like a disease, they didn't want to be felt. Some campers even wanted Percy to have killed his half brother. Then he could at least deserve his punishment. He didn't deserve this. The few campers that felt that made them feel even guiltier.

"Guilty until proven innocent," a brave camper spoke loudly, his voice echoing and bouncing across the large Throne Room. "Percy's innocent, release him!"

Although most campers agreed, no one said a word to defend that statement. Zeus made a hand gesture, and Ares had the job of the nasty. The camper was dragged out of the room. A sharp whack and an elevator ding were heard.

A gasp and heavy breathing could be heard after the silence that held. Everyone snapped their heads back towards the screen to see Percy, released from the water tank. He was holding his neck as if he had just been choking. He coughed, and water gushed out like a geyser. He couldn't control the water that spilled out. But that wasn't what he was that worried about. He had seen the camper get kicked out.

"Guilty until proven innocent," Percy repeated. "You only kicked him out because you don't want to believe things. You never do. It's always you isn't it? It always has to be your problems. Never others. That's why you kicked him out didn't you?"

Zeus was beginning to look flustered. "You have it all wrong! You're lying-"

"And you're right," Percy said, looking at Zeus's face. The king of the gods was looking very pleased with himself. "But you didn't even catch my sarcasm. You always want to be right. Even when you're wrong. And to all the campers that heard him. Whole lots of cowards aren't you? You knew he was right, yet you didn't say anything. Now back to my original question. Where are Thalia and Nico?"

"You're a coward!" A camper who didn't like being insulted yelled in Percy's face on the screen. "That's not even real pain! You're just a coward. You belong in Tartarus with the rest of them!"

Now Percy was angry. "You call me a coward? You think this isn't pain? Do you know how it's like? To have your very own strongest domain being turned against you? To have letters carved in your skin so fierce it reaches your bone? To have arrows and knives, shackles and ropes to be tied or stabbed at you? To face betrayal?"

The last question had been whispered quietly, but yet, everyone could hear it clearly. The camper stayed quiet, with her face down, looking at her shoes.

"Thought so," Percy muttered. "So now that we've wasted enough time. Where are Thalia and Nico?"

Percy was trying to stay calm after his outburst, but that proved to be hard as a knife passed right above him, cutting off parts of his messy hair.

"I won't miss next time Jackson!" A monster jeered.

Everyone was silent. Their hopes were on Zeus to tell the tale. But even he didn't speak.

"Zeus-" Poseidon began, hoping to score a few points with his son.

"Not you," Percy looked at Poseidon coldly. "I want someone else to tell me where they are. Or what happened. I don't see anyone sliding down the pit, so I suppose I should thank you for not sending them down like you did with me."

Poseidon flinched as his son looked at him. Not a glare. But a stare. One so cold and haunted, it made him regret the decision he had made. And looking around, it seemed that others regretted their decision as well.

Percy looked around the room, and occasionally his eyes would soften as he stared at the people who didn't betray him. He even went as far too give them a smile which signaled everyone that he was still in there. They smiled back, not even hesitantly and stared at him reassuringly. Finally his green eyes locked with Athena's grey ones.

Athena stared back at the screen. It felt so real, like Percy was actually in the room. But she knew he wasn't. He was in Tartarus. And then he did something surprising. He grinned, with no humor.

"Athena," Percy spoke, still staring. "How about you tell the tale? You were the one who banished me, let's see if you can stare in my eyes and tell the tale of where my two favorite cousins are."

Athena wanted to unlock their eyes. She wanted to say no. But most of all, she wanted to undo what she did. She admitted it in her mind. She regretted what she did. Looking at the boy right now, he looked so hurt through his cold facade he kept on his face. She could see the betrayal was still processing in his mind. She admitted to herself that maybe, for once she was wrong.

So Athena kept her gaze to him, ignoring her father's request, demanding to not tell it. She took a deep breath and began the story, despite what Zeus seemed to protest.

"Zeus disowned his daughter," Athena spoke, only stating the basic facts.

"Thalia," Percy muttered, then unlocked his eyes and glared at Zeus. "Why and how?"

Athena answered again. "Thalia was shooting her arrows at Ares at a comment he made about you. Zeus asked her to stop because he said that no daughter of his would do something like that. Then she said she wasn't his daughter anymore. And then she walked away along with Nico. We don't know where they are now."

Percy nodded, thinking everything through one by one. Kronos had left, and he knew that he had given him some time alone. He was grateful for that, but he knew he would suffer more.

"Why would you say that Athena?" Zeus thundered.

Percy looked up at Athena as if it was a good question. She stared back at him, sighing, which meant she was going to be talking after all.

"I don't like you. I could even go as far to say that I despise you," Athena spoke after a few moments. "But that does not mean that I do not respect you."

Percy nodded, but then a hand gripped his hair and pulled him back. His time was up. The screen went black, and then four words came up.

NOT FOR LITTLE KIDS

Those words were written in blood. And in horror, everyone could see that it was written in Percy's blood. A loud insane maniacal chuckle was heard and then the screen shut off.  
**  
****A/N: Sorry for any OOCness and the kind of long wait, I have more stories to write as well, so I'm trying my best to update. Thanks for all the great suggestions and reviews, but I'm trying my best to make this T. I don't want to change it to M. Thanks for all the support!******

**Emmie Jotter: If you mean after what book? This is after The Last Olympian, and there will be no Heroes of Olympus series in this story. If that doesn't answer your question, then please tell me.******

**WiseWoman1000: I won't change it into a Chaos story, it would be a good twist, but I won't, don't worry.******

**ILOVEPERCYSOMUCH: I think there's a problem here... When I first started a Fanfiction account, I knew from the start that I couldn't please everyone. So I'm really, really sorry, but sometimes I will use cussing. I won't do it on purpose for no reason, whenever they cuss, I'll have a reason prepared. Sorry.******

**Anonymous: Sorry, no romances, like I said before. I still have a lot of chapters to go, so I'm still thinking about forgiveness and betrayal. But it makes sense to not forgive someone, especially when you get sent to Tartarus for no reason.******

**Semperfi1: My updates will mostly be random, but they will all be under 2 weeks, but mostly either after or before 1 week. Unless something bad happens, my updates will be more than 2 weeks.**


	6. Earthquake and Family Drama

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 5

It was the exact opposite of what the gods wanted after the screen turned dark, signaling that it was turned off. They expected a stunned silence reaction and quiet whispers to break out that would soon turn into voices. They didn't expect panic. Yells. Screams. Shouts. Statements.

"That's torture!" A camper yelled and broke down in hysterics at seeing her hero being tortured.

"So that's what the gods do now?" Another camper spoke up bravely. "Send heroes to Tartarus?"

Zeus's face flushed red from humiliation. "You see, we-"

"We?" Apollo yelled in anger. "It was you and a few others!"

And that's how the gods ended up having the entire Olympus filled with loud yelling. No one tried to stop them. Several attempts were tried but it didn't work. Eventually Hermes had to ask Hestia to do something, since she was sitting around the hearth, tending it carefully.

"Hestia," Hermes said to the goddess through all the noise. She still managed to hear him. "I've even tried using fireworks but it didn't work, can you do something?"

Hestia looked at the walls, and true to Hermes's words, fireworks were exploding all over the place. Different things appeared, and even a few swearwords to the gods that betrayed Percy stood out clearly in the air. She shook her head and settled for a small smile.

"Fireworks won't help. Fireworks are only part of fire. However real fire," Hestia started as she raised a finger up to the air. "Can actually do something."

And with that, Hestia's finger soon had a large fireball floating above it. The flame got bigger and larger that made the occupants stop and stare. She laughed softly as she looked up at the still remaining fireworks Hermes had set up.

"I like that one," Hestia said to Hermes before using her other hand to point at one of the fireworks.

In clear letter the fireworks spelled out words that everyone could read: ARE YOU CIVILIZED PEOPLE OR KINDERGARTNERS?

"Except not all kindergarteners are bad," Hestia corrected herself.

"What is the meaning of this?" Zeus thundered with his usual overdramatic voice.

"I believe you are the meaning," Hestia mused as she looked at her sibling.

Hestia snapped her fingers and the fireball reduced its size, slowly coming to a small flame that looked like a lighter. Except the occupants in the room knew it wasn't. The goddess of the hearth doesn't smoke.

"That is a sucker punch to the stomach," Hermes chuckled as he looked at Zeus's disbelieving face.

Silence finally settled in the room as Hestia had talked. Some stared at her in awe, while others settled to looking anywhere but the two Olympians.

"Why don't you banish her don't you?" Apollo asked, before looking at Hestia for acceptance. She nodded, understanding what he was going to say next. "That seems to be what you're good in aren't you?"

And before anyone could hear Zeus reply or even open his mouth to speak, a sudden violent earthquake happened. Assumptions were made, and fingers pointed at Poseidon immediately. Not literally, but everyone knew that only the god of the seas could do that. But all those fingers were pointing at the wrong direction. All those assumptions were made wrongly. He shook his head, and even he couldn't figure it out.

"You might not believe me," Poseidon spoke when Olympus was quaking. "But it is not my doing."

"Then who is it?" Zeus shouted over the panic. "At least decrease it!"

"Do you think I'm not doing something?" Poseidon snapped.

"Yes!"

"I am! But I cannot. Even if I wanted to. However, I can teleport anywhere and see who the person is creating the earthquake."

"Do it!"

Fear and panic were the two main things happening. And tears. It was the perfect moment for the great Annabeth Chase, official architect of Olympus to have tears escape from her eyes. _Such a grand title,_ she told herself. _Such a grand title where I can build great things._ But then a voice piped up something she did not want to hear. _Without Percy.__  
_  
Annabeth hastily wiped the tears away, but no one could see her, she was stuck somewhere, under a throne probably.

"What kind of girlfriend am I?" Annabeth whispered quietly to herself.

The voice piped something up again. _His ex.___

And suddenly, the earthquake stopped. Sighs of relief could be heard. But Athena knew something was happening. Poseidon was still gone. She was right about something. Something was happening. Somewhere, someplace. It just had to be Olympus that was affected didn't it?

Another earthquake, one more powerful than the other one. A level five, quickly rising up to six, and then seven...

"Olympus is supposed to be strong!" Someone yelled.

Zeus panicked immediately. "The architect will fix things up as soon as this is over."

Zeus waited for a response and looked around. The entire Throne Room was in a mess. And searching for a demigod didn't help anything at all.

"Where is she?" Zeus asked out loudly.

And then the rumbling intensified to a level eight. Thrones were actually starting to fall down, and pillars crashed down on the occupants. Screams could be heard now. And running. Lots of running. People trying to find the exit, attempting to get to the elevator with the horrible music. Anything but Olympus. The outside world didn't seem to be affected which was strange.

"Emergency protocol!" Athena suddenly shouted as if she remembered something. "Use emergency protocol!"

"Anyone outside the Throne Room won't get in! Poseidon won't get in!" Hephaestus shouted back.

"Who cares?" Athena spoke back as a reply. "Annabeth, do it now!"

Annabeth, on instinct, followed Athena's orders and pressed a button on her watch. The entire Throne Room, through all the dust and pieces of marble and tile stood still. Then a huge cube the size of the room fell down on them. The bottom layer of the cube that fell became transparent as occupants filed in hurriedly. The transparency was basically how people got in. Like a door that was open. After five minutes, the transparency stopped, and it was activated. No one could get in, no one could get out. The device decided when they were going to get out. It could be days, weeks. It was never more than a year.

And on the worst timing in history, Poseidon arrived. He stared at the cube in confusion, trying to remember what it was. Then he snapped his fingers. _Emergency protocol._ And judging by the silence apart from the intense earthquake, it was activated.

"Zeus!" Poseidon banged his hands on the cube.

Faint shouting could be heard from outside the cube. They relaxed when they were in the cube, but instantly were on alert mode when shouting was heard.

"It's probably Poseidon," Dionysus said lazily.

"What does he want?" Athena asked sharply.

"I found out who the person was!" Poseidon shouted.

Now everyone was silent. Regular shouting as if Poseidon was actually in the room was heard. Now he could finally not strain his voice. He whispered the last part, and still everyone could hear it. He didn't whisper because he wanted to be funny, or silly. But it still felt unbelievable, that it could only affect Olympus. _Even from all the way down there,_ he thought sadly. _I've made the wrong choice...___

"It's Percy."

**In Tartarus, with Percy, a few minutes before the earthquake happened:******

"I bet you a billion drachmas that they are all arguing up in the Throne Room," Kronos said to Percy once he showed the letters and the screen shut off. "About you. I bet they're all arguing about you. They finally feel pity. And yet, I do not see any elevators bring you back to that pathetic camp of yours."

"Stop it," Percy whispered forcefully.

"Why?" Kronos continued. "Do you not want to face the truth?"

"Because it's not the truth," Percy said firmly, trying hard to believe that he would get out of Tartarus as quickly as possible.

"Loyalty will get you killed someday. A great example is right in front of me. Who is it? Why our very own Perseus Jackson of course. Betrayed by his friends, by the gods, and who could forget, his girlfriend."

"Shut up. I'm not even listening."

"Oh you are. And if you're not listening, then you don't need your ears anymore do you?"

Kronos got scissors out of nowhere and opened it and closed it threateningly in front of Percy's face, snapping it closer to his ear with every snap they heard.

"I do!" Percy said hurriedly. He didn't know what made him say it, he might be better off without ears anyway, but he needed his ears. "I'll listen to your... Statements."

Percy could see Kronos smile cruelly. "I thought you said you weren't listening?"

"I am... Going to listen right now."

"That's satisfying, but..."

Kronos did something surprising, that Percy never expected. First, the scissors were steered clear away from his ears, and suddenly they were back. He could feel agony as he finally knew what had happened. _Not the whole ear,_ he tried to remind himself as he attempted to stay positive. _He only cut off the very top part of my ear. Be glad it isn't more. Listen!__  
_  
"I see you have finally decided to listen," Kronos smiled, showing all his ugly teeth. "So I do not need this anymore."

And with those words said, Kronos threw the now very red bloody scissors away. Percy stared at the floor and saw something that looked like an olive? No. The upper small part of his ear. Cut off. And right beneath him. He retched and the Titan grimaced.

"Do that once more," Kronos said slowly to the prisoner. "And I'll start on those letters early."

As if on a horrible cue to not start, Percy couldn't help it as he stared at his piece of skin on the ground. No buckets or any toilet bowl seats were held, and therefore, the titan's newly polished shoes were now a different sickly color.

"Right," Kronos stated, and them his voice turned to a yell. "Lettering tools, now!"

Percy didn't know what triggered his reaction, or the shock. He was sitting in an electrical chair, and a shock came to him. And this wasn't one of Thalia's playful shocks she gave him. This was one of those really extreme painful ones. The ones that would last only a second but the feeling of the shock would last for years. Forever even.

A triggered reaction. An earthquake. Percy couldn't control it as he felt a tug in his gut. He was confused when no water came, but then he realized something as the feeling started to tug harder. He was starting an earthquake. He hoped that maybe it was in Tartarus, but it wasn't. It was in Olympus.

A flash of light came only minutes later. Percy didn't know whether he should feel happy or not. _Maybe they're releasing me;_ he tried to think on the bright side. But as he heard thundering footsteps that were slow, he might have thought wrong.

"Perseus Jackson!" Poseidon yelled.

"How are you doing today dad?" Percy replied sarcastically. Then he continued with a hopeful voice. "Have you come to release me?"

Poseidon ignored Percy's remark. "Stop the earthquake immediately!"

Percy's tug got lighter and he knew that the earthquake had stopped at once. He didn't know why he did what Poseidon had told him. Maybe it would score a few points with him so he would be released quicker.

Poseidon walked away quickly.

"No goodbye?" Percy called out to the darkness.

Percy couldn't hear any reply. He strained his good ear for any sounds. Nothing. Except a very faint voice saying 'no.' That voice belonged to Poseidon. And that was it. The earthquake on Olympus only increased its power as he got angrier and let out all the suffering he had with him.

Poseidon was about to teleport away back to Olympus when he saw it in his mind. Olympus was once again, devoured by an earthquake. He frowned, and heavy footsteps could be heard all around the pit.

"Stop!" Poseidon demanded. "As your father, I demand-"

"Why did you vote for my banishment?" Percy asked from the pit. "I thought you would side with me, not against me. I thought you were different from the Olympians. Not only because you were my father, but because you were always more laid back than any other of the Big Three. In fact, it was Hades. _Hades_ of all the Big Three to actually vote my stay."

A bitter laugh could be heard, and Poseidon flinched. He didn't intend to come into this family drama.

"Just stop the earthquake!" Poseidon demanded again, but it was with a weaker voice.

Silence from the pit. And just when Poseidon was about to demand it once more, Percy spoke.

"Just go away!" Percy shouted loudly with anger that surprised Poseidon.

Such surprise, that Poseidon listened and teleported away to Olympus quickly.

Percy lay all alone in the pit, waiting for the time when he could get out of Tartarus. But as he heard marching, that he identified as Kronos as his army, he was starting to lose hope.

**A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, even if it was a kind of filler chapter. If the torture is too gruesome tell me. One important thing, I haven't received any reviews telling me that this torture is way too cruel, but I'm just telling everyone now: if any of you do not like torture, don't read it.******

**People are asking for a revenge-fic, but I have something else planned out, so sorry about that. Should I fast forward to his release or keep on going like this? Even though I only reply to some reviewers, thanks for all the other support!******

**emthereble: Maybe, I have no idea... Depends actually. Do you want me to time skip like I said above?******

**Guest: There are tons of Guests, but you were the one who wanted Perlia. Sorry, no Perlia like I said before. Sorry again, but no romances.******

**Semperfi1: I know most/ some won't be possible in real life, but this is Fanfiction.******

**Soccerlover5959: Is that a good thing or a bad thing?******

**Lovebug109: I read the story 'From the Brink' before. It's a good story, and I did get my inspiration from there. And I don't know, I'll have to see what twists I come up with.**


	7. Freedom

******Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians******

Chapter 6

The elevator ride down was led in silence. Thalia refused to say anything, but still felt grateful that Nico had joined her. Even if she needed or had to speak, she didn't know what to say. There was nothing to say anyway. Her ex-dad had disowned her, and she had beaten up Ares. She didn't even know if she was the lieutenant of Artemis anymore. _Probably not,_ she decided.

Thalia's ears hurt because of the music in the elevator. Not only that, but the words of Zeus rung in her ears clearly. And no matter how strong people are, they can feel pain as well. And today was definitely the day, where she felt pain. Emotional pain.

Nico watched Thalia as the elevator went down to the lobby. He watched as emotions flickered on her face like a movie. Call him a stalker, it was being concerned. Whatever he had thought of her not caring was now changed. In truth was, he knew that she did care. A lot. A strangled choking noise was heard, and he pretended not to notice as she turned away, hiding her face from them world.

The elevator door dinged, and the doors slid open. They stepped out of the elevator, and walked towards the door quickly, wanting to get out of the building as quickly as possible. It was when Nico accidentally banged his head on the door, when Thalia got the idea.

"Nico," Thalia started out slowly, still thinking of her idea. "Can you and you alone get people out of Tartarus?"

"There's this rope in Hades's office that's long enough to get people out of Tartarus but..." Nico trailed off, but then his eyes widened as he looked at Thalia. "I want to do that as well but I can never get past Hades's office without being caught."

"You have to try! It's the only way he's getting out of there. The gods won't do anything for his release, you've seen them!"

Nico didn't reply for a while. He thought it was a great idea, but then again, it was in Hades's office. And if anyone tried to even attempt of stealing anything, let alone the rope, they could die, or worse. No exceptions. Even for his own son...

"You and Perce own me a huge favor," Nico finally muttered. "Fine I'll do it. The bright side of dying is that I can finally see my sister and mom again I guess."

"I'm glad you're seeing the bright side of things," Thalia replied, as she dragged Nico off to somewhere.

Once the two cousins were both in a place where no one could see them, Nico touched Thalia's shoulder and shadow traveled them both to the entrance to the Underworld in Central Park. The son of Hades was used to it, but his passenger still wasn't. After the trip was over, she held onto a random tree, to calm down from her mini headache and dizziness.

While Thalia was resting, Nico sat down on the ground. He closed his eyes and imagined himself walking to Hades's office, and trying to get past all the security to get that rope, and then a bird would be tapping him on the shoulder... His eyes opened and saw that his cousin was tapping him on the shoulder. He was glad she wasn't a mind reader or else she would probably severely injure him because of calling her a bird.

"Can you make some music?" Nico asked Thalia once he got up from his sitting position.

"Is singing 'la la la' ok?" Thalia asked Nico sarcastically.

Nico shrugged, getting the sarcasm but choosing to ignore it.

"Can't you conjure up a skeleton musician or something?" Thalia questioned impatiently, as she looked at Nico who wasn't doing anything.

With a 'why haven't I thought of that idea' face on, Nico summoned a random skeleton and it started playing the acoustic guitar loudly, making occupants in the park look at them strangely. Thalia glared at anyone who looked, which wasn't fair because they were just curious. But life wasn't fair. One lesson learned. As Mr. D would say: 'huzzah.'

"Let's go," Nico said, as he gestured for Thalia to come forwards.

Not even hesitating, Thalia stepped forwards as darkness greeted her in the Underworld.

"So how do you want to do this?" Thalia asked, as she continued walking down steps.

"I'm going to try and sneak in Hades's office and get the rope."

"What are the consequences if you get caught?"

"Then I'll pay an early visit to my mom and sister."

Thalia stopped, and since Nico couldn't hear any footsteps except for his own, he halted as well. He turned his head and saw that his cousin had stopped. She wasn't so sure about this anymore. Yet she desperately wanted for Percy to get out of Tartarus. But was she that desperate, that her cousin could possibly die?

Nico saw Thalia falter as multiple expressions passed on her face. He could guess what she was thinking.

"Let's just go," Nico had to drag Thalia down the steps.

Thalia immediately pulled her hand away, and continued walking down the seemingly never-ending steps. She stayed silent for a while, thinking. _Thinking... If Annabeth was here, she would think of a plan,_ she thought. But even when her thoughts mentioned the name, anger spread throughout. For a daughter of Athena, that was a really stupid move.

"Would you really risk it?" Thalia called out to Nico. "Would you risk your life to get Percy out of Tartarus?"

A silence washed over them, except for the footsteps trudging along the stairs. Thalia still waited for an answer, while Nico continued moving in the darkness.

"Yes."

And there went Nico's answer.

**In Olympus, in the cube: ******

"Its revenge! I'm positive; he's trying to kill us because we sent him to Tartarus! Well now I see it, he belongs there, and will forever be a good for nothing piece of sh-"

"Shut up," Apollo's voice was sharp as he turned to glare at the camper. "Just shut up."

Hades felt someone enter his domain. He closed his eyes and saw that it was Nico and Thalia. He knew what they were going to do immediately after. They were going to find the rope to get Percy out of Tartarus. His frown was barely noticeable. Should he make an exception this time...?

Hades looked at Apollo who was still glaring at the camper. He looked all around and saw many depressed faces. _But it's their fault,_ he realized. Maybe this should teach them a lesson. But for a demigod to suffer just because of a lesson? _Just this once,_ he found himself thinking. _Just this once_.

Annabeth leaned on the cube wall, not surprised at the news. Of course it was Percy. Who else could it be? Who else would be that angry at Olympus and the people on it? She vaguely wondered where Thalia and Nico were right now. _Maybe they're visiting a certain someone, _she thought bitterly, still regretting her decision. _And they'll all get chummy and maybe have a nice cup of tea while I'll just suffer in this cube. _She reminded herself that it was her fault, which did more damage than good. Why did she have to remind herself?

Zeus was not used to sitting on the ground. So that's why, seconds later, a huge throne, exactly like the one he originally had, was on the surface of the cube. He sat on the throne proudly, looking around, and seeing depressed faces. He wondered why everyone was depressed when a thought occurred to him. Percy. Of course, he would be the reason for the depression. He used to be the reason of happiness. Turned out to be the opposite.

Zeus's mind wandered around to a subject he hadn't thought about since the earthquake had happened: Thalia, his used to be daughter until he had disowned her. And it wasn't even an official disown. It was casual, just like eating hamburgers she always liked. Anger grew inside of him as he replayed the entire scene in his mind:

_"No daughter of mine would do that!" Zeus yelled, ignoring the sword pointing his way dangerously.___

_Thalia didn't even flinch. "Then I'm not your daughter."___

_"Even if you say you're not the father Zeus," Athena told them both. "Thalia is still half of you. The only thing you can do is say you're not her father."___

_"So be it," Zeus rumbled with fury. "I Zeus will hereby-"___

_"Cut the crap," Thalia cut him off. "I'm not your daughter anymore."__  
_  
Zeus remembered all the dialogue used, and when Thalia walked into the elevator along with Nico, the son of Hades. Fury was evident in his face, and lightning didn't strike outside. It struck inside the cube, unintentionally striking an innocent victim.

A scream of pain was heard, an Apollo rushed to the demigod's side at once. He placed his hands on the demigod's stomach and a yellow light was shone before it faded. The pain was gone, and the demigod smiled at the healer. He smiled back.

"Control your temper," Hera warned Zeus, gazing at him sharply.

Artemis stared at Zeus before her gaze turned to something or someone else. She wanted to hunt something with her hunters, but in the cube, it was impossible to. She winced. She had left her hunters at the campsite, and they were probably wondering where she was by now. When- if she ever got out of the cube, she would return to the campsite immediately. She sighed, and her silver eyes finally landed on Athena.

_Athena... The name brings wisdom to shame,_ Hermes mused. _If it weren't for her, Percy might have been the only hero who would have gotten a happy ending... Probably. _He couldn't help but wanting to punch the goddess to another country. It was all her fault. And whatever friendship they had between them was now gone.

With many people in the cube, it was hard to know that there would be almost no noise except for the occasional tears and talks.

"Percy would have cheered this mood up," a camper muttered.

"No he wouldn't, he's the reason we're in this mood," another camper snapped back.

That one moment of silence was now broken.

**Outside the cube, still in Olympus: ****  
**  
Poseidon was lying when he thought he felt fine. Everything wasn't fine. His son was in Tartarus, and he had made matters many times worse when he went there to see where the source was. He didn't know what to feel. Regret? Remorse? But out of all of those answers, only one answer popped out the most. Guilt. He was feeling guilt. He didn't know why he had put up his hand to send him to the pit. And he didn't want to know.

"Sally," Poseidon suddenly whispered. "I've got to tell Sally what happened."

And before Poseidon had any more doubts of what would happen, he teleported away to Sally's apartment. He had never expected that he would be the one telling her. He had expected, maybe another one of the other gods could tell her. One that didn't betray Percy. But here he was, ringing the doorbell.

Sally answered the door, and was surprised to see Poseidon there. And without wasting any time, he told her everything, without even greeting her. Her face went from surprise, to shock, disgust, and it finally landed on one emotion: sadness and anger.

"How dare you?" Sally shouted, as she heard the last part about Tartarus. "How dare you vote for my son to go to Tartarus?"

It's a mother's worse fear if someone tells the mother that her child has died. And yet, here she was, Sally Jackson, hearing the news worse than death. Tartarus... And without thinking, she slapped Poseidon. Hard. And with that, she slammed the door in his face, for once in her life hoping that the door broke his nose.  
**  
****In the Underworld with Thalia and Nico:****  
**  
"We're here," Nico spoke for the first time in ages.

Thalia only nodded. It felt like only minutes ago when Nico had answered yes to her question. She had thought about it, and if she were in his position, she would have done the same thing as well. She sighed in what was possible relief. People said she had been selfish more than once. Now, she knew that it wasn't true.

"Wait here," Nico finished, before taking a deep breath.

Nico was about to shadow travel when Thalia suddenly hugged him. He stiffened, startled, but soon loosened up. He slowly patted her back.

"Thank you," Thalia said sincerely, as they released the hug.

Nico only nodded, as he shadow traveled into Hades's office. No alarms had sounded yet, so he took that as a good sign and continued searching. He made sure not to clutter up any death reports on the desk. He searched in drawers, and cabinets, but couldn't find it. He wondered why security hadn't killed him yet.

_Better not waste any time to find out,_ Nico thought. He searched around more desperately, looking even under the chairs. And that was when he saw it. The rope was hanging above him all along. He carefully unattached it from its hanger, and shadow traveled out, exhaustion clearly on his face.

After Nico had shadow traveled away, Thalia kept on looking at the office in worry and concern. The three cousins had always been a family to each other, more like brothers and sisters, than cousins. She wouldn't know what to do if he got himself killed. Then she wouldn't have the rope. And if she didn't have the rope, then Percy wouldn't get out until two years had passed. Yes the hunt was her family, but her two cousins were actual family. And family had to stick together.

And just when Thalia was going to go in the office to see if anyone had died, a blur was seen. It was Nico. He lay on the floor tiredly, since he had shadow traveled a few times. He took deep breaths, and held the rope up so she could see.

"Security's low," Nico said. "It was strange."

"Let's not worry about that now," Thalia replied. "We can worry about that after we go rescue Percy."

Nico's energy suddenly felt refreshed. He stood up, and walked to the left. Thalia followed him quickly. She felt excitement creep up, but still felt shocked, but she didn't know why. Maybe it was because all the ghosts would sometimes go 'peek-a-boo' on her. She couldn't wait for Percy to be released.

"How much further?" Thalia asked Nico.

"A few minutes," Nico replied, looking left and right before deciding to go forwards.

"How many minutes?"

"Seven. Four if we run."

"Let's run then."

And without warning, Thalia began sprinting forwards, beating Nico as he looked up. He sighed, he was still tired. He followed anyway, understanding why she ran. He barely even managed to catch up with her.

"Right!" Nico yelled once he saw a black and sliver figure running forwards quickly. "Turn a right!"

Thalia stopped running, and saw that Nico was far behind. She waited a moment, hoping he would catch up quicker. Eventually, he did, catching his breath every once in a while. She shook her head, he was too slow.

"Do I have to carry you everywhere?" Thalia grumbled.

"That's not a bad idea actually..."

All that time they were speaking, they were also heading the right direction. And soon, without even noticing it, they saw Tartarus, in all its dark glory. They walked further, before Thalia nudged for Nico to speak.

"Percy!" Nico yelled.

Nico's voice echoed all around the pit like a cave. Thalia placed her hands on her ears and grimaced. It was a pretty loud yell. And in the usual silence, it was surprising to hear anything at all, let alone a yell.

"What is it?" The cold voice of Kronos answered.

"Same deal as before?" Nico replied, covering his own ears as well.

"Does our little hero want it? Maybe he doesn't wan-"

"I'll do it," a weak and hoarse voice spoke. It was quiet, but it was there. "I'll talk to them."

While Kronos's army retreated back to somewhere else, the cousins uncovered their ears.

"Nico, how are we going to explain to him, that using this rope, he can get out without alerting Kronos and his army?" Thalia asked suddenly, hoping for an answer.

"Explain it in words of a song," Nico suggested. "Like: This rope that I'm sending down is going to free the crown..."

Thalia looked startled, and then a voice called out. "Five minutes starts now."

"There is a rope we are sending down,

It will free the crown,

And you of course,

And the rest of the people who betrayed you feel remorse,

But we feel worse,

Because we haven't stopped the gods when they banished you,

And some people went to the loo,

So hold on to the rope,

You will feel dope,

As we pull the rope up,

And when you reach the top we'll be greeting you with a 'wuzzup?'

Now follow those exact words,

And then these cords,

Will bring you to freedom,

Freedom."

While singing the song, Thalia began sending the rope down hurriedly, hoping there was enough time. She had just made up the song in her head, finding words that rhymed and matching them together randomly. Nico stamped his feet so that Kronos couldn't hear the thud of the rope as it hit the bottom.

Percy vaguely wondered why Thalia was singing a song. A song about freedom. He saw a shape coming down. He backed up, and saw it come down quicker. It looked like a... Rope? Hope started rising, and there was nothing to crush that hope, as the shape was revealed.

"Now follow those exact words,

And then these cords,

Will bring you to freedom,

Freedom."

There were those words again. And Percy finally knew what to do. Five minutes were almost over, and he could already hear some noises. His bleeding hands held onto the rope, and it was pulled up. He was going to be free.

"Pull it up quicker, I can hear footsteps already!" Thalia hissed at Nico, as they hauled the rope up.

"Oh, that's my feet tapping on the ground..." Nico said sheepishly.

"Still do it quickly then."

Nico suddenly grinned; he summoned a few skeletons to help them out. Thalia grinned back, as the extra strength managed for them to almost come to the end of the rope. Almost. But not quite yet. But even when she pulled, she knew that Percy would be released. Today. And if he wasn't on the rope then... Her rhythmic pulls faltered, but then continued. _He has to be on that rope. He has to be._ And she pulled quicker. _If they ever have a tug of war, at camp,_ she thought, _I would definitely win._

Nico watched as the rope came up. He really hoped he didn't lose his grip. If he did, then he knew that the rope would slip, and Percy would die. For the better or the worse, he didn't know. He just hoped that his cousin would be on that rope. He felt the rope ending, and he grinned. With one last tug, he fell to the ground, but knew that something good had happened, when he heard loud footsteps.

Those loud footsteps were identified as Thalia's as Nico sat up. His grimace of landing on the floor faded and changed into a grin. Percy was on that rope, he was now certain. He was right in front of Thalia and him after all, breathing and still alive.

**In Olympus, in the cube: ****  
**  
Hades felt a presence leave Tartarus. For a second, he worried that it might be Kronos attempting to rise, but then he remembered that Nico had gotten the rope. The rope to free Percy. _So it must be Jackson, _he mused. And then he smiled.

**A/N: Sorry for any OOCness. Hope you all enjoyed the really long chapter. My chapters will now be varying in between 2-3k words. The song belongs to no one, I made it up myself, since I don't know any songs specifying that moment. Thanks for all the support!******

**eagle23: Hope it's not trash anymore...******

**emmalunajackson33: Percy still keeps Riptide, it says in the beginning of the story actually... But he doesn't have time to take it out. Sorry, I haven't really thought of that.**


	8. Going Home and Death

******Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 7

"Wuzzup?" Was the first word out of Thalia's mouth, as she looked at Percy.

Percy looked back at Thalia. "I know it's only been a few days or hours, but I really missed you guys."

Nico pretended to cover his ears. "Too cheesy and corny for me!"

Nico got up from his sitting position. The three cousins looked at each other and smiled.

"We missed you too Percy," Thalia said, her voice thickened with emotion. "We did too."

And with those words spoken, the three cousins put their arms over each others shoulders. A hug. Percy savored the moment, and sighed deeply. The two let him, and didn't let go for a long time.

Thalia finally let herself relax as she was hugged. She hadn't relaxed for days or hours, and now, she could. She didn't care if she was a hunter or not. She didn't care at all. She knew that if there was a hunter group for guys, then Percy would definitely join. She had missed him. And as she looked up at his closing eyes, she realized how injured he really was. His arm had some letters written on them, yet they were too scratchy too read. She didn't bother with her eyesight problem anymore. Her hair covered her face as she let her head hang low.

Nico saw a tear drop and splatter on the ground and realized with a start that it belonged to Percy. He looked at his cousin, and wondered how he had survived for so long and yet, not be even be bothered at all the injuries he had yet. If it were him, he would have already broken own already, trying not to, but doing it all the same. _Lucky it's not me,_ he thought. He immediately tried to change his words. He was being glad that it was his cousin and not him that had been in Tartarus. _That's bad...__  
_  
Percy stared at all his cousin like he didn't believe it yet. Thalia had tears brimming in her eyes, and she was trying as hard as she could to not let it fall. He saw that Nico was thinking deep in thought about something. He saw his cousin look surprised in a bad way. He looked away. All he cared about was that he was free. Free from Tartarus. Away from Kronos... A tear shed from his eye, and he watched it fall to the floor, and splatter everywhere.

"So where are we going now?" Percy asked, trying as hard as he could to not fall down and collapse anywhere.

"Get one of the gods that is on our side to heal you," Thalia replied, staring at Percy. "Apollo."

"And then what?"

"And then..."

Even Thalia was stuck for words. "Let's just go ask Apollo when we get out of here."

Percy nodded, looking around once more before deciding he was safe. And when he was safe, he could finally allow his injuries to do its job. Pain closed in on him, like tiny needles, stabbing him at 300 kilometers and hour. He gasped in shock, and went to the second best thing in the world as his eyes rolled to the back of his head: unconsciousness...

"Don't die on me Percy!" Thalia yelled when she saw his eyes closing.

"He's not dead Thalia," Nico spoke for the second time since Percy was back. "He's just unconscious."

Thalia sighed in relief. "You think you can shadow travel us all out of here?"

Nico looked at Thalia and an unconscious Percy. He took out a whistle in his pocket and blew it. It was Mrs. O'Leary's whistle. And only seconds later, the huge hellhound dog came. She stared at the hellhound and smiled.

"Percy can ride Mrs. O'Leary," Nico spoke, grinning. "You can come with me."

Thalia shrugged, showing she was ok with it. Nico whispered where they wanted to go in the hellhound's ear. The hellhound nodded, as the two cousins lifted Percy up and onto the dog.

"Don't make him fall," were the last words spoken by Nico, before the hellhound was off.

"Where are we going?" Thalia asked curiously.

"First I'm going to put the rope back and then-" Nico was about to finish his sentence, when a voice was heard.

"JACKSON!" Kronos roared angrily, his loud voice banging and echoing everywhere. "COME BACK HERE!"

Thalia and Nico looked at each other with panic in their eyes. If Kronos continued like this, then the gods would know, and then... The son of Hades left the rope where it was and shadow traveled both him and his cousin to the meeting place.

The first meeting place was in Central Park, still in New York. Thalia let go of Nico's shoulder and sat down on a bench. Mrs. O'Leary was already there, along with Percy.

"Why did you pick a public place?" Thalia groaned as she looked at all the people staring.

Nico shrugged. "I don't know."

"Let's go somewhere else then," Thalia hissed, glaring at anyone who stared at their direction.

"Where?"

"Somewhere where people won't see us."

"Makes sense."

And with those words spoken, Nico walked up to the hellhound and whispered more direction in Mrs. O'Leary's huge ear. The hellhound howled loudly, causing all the people to jump up and few to run away. The hellhound ran, soon disappearing into the nearest shadow.

"I think someone's calling the cops," Thalia warned. "Let's go."

Nico nodded, before Thalia held his shoulder. He looked around. All the people had left after the loud bark. He saw the nearest shadow and grinned. In two seconds, they were gone, leaving nothing behind.

They reappeared in Sally Blofis' apartment. Nico immediately went to the window and saw that Mrs. O'Leary was waiting outside instead of inside. He saw Percy on the ground, still inclosing darkness.

Thalia was entering the kitchen for something to eat. She saw a note on the fridge and attempted to read it. She gave up after stumbling through the first sentence. _It probably said that she was going shopping,_ she thought with a start. _But where was Paul?_

"They're both not at home," Thalia told Nico.

"They're probably out shopping or something," Nico replied, dismissing the problem as a minor. "We need to get Apollo here now."

"You get Percy. I'll try to get Apollo here."

Nico started to open the door and walk towards the apartment's elevator, when he bumped into someone. He looked up, slightly annoyed. It was Percy. He grinned when he saw his cousin. The son of Poseidon grinned back.

"Who told my mom?" Percy asked, his grin only fading a tiny bit.

"I don't know actually," Nico responded, supporting his cousin to the doorway.

Nico's grin faltered when he saw that the door was still left open. Thalia _was supposed to close it...__  
_  
"Thalia?" Nico asked, looking around.

Thalia came to the door, looking slightly worried. "Apollo didn't reply. He always replies to everyone when they pray for him."

Thalia took a glance look at Percy. _He isn't going to heal by himself,_ she knew. "We'll have to try and heal you as best as we can then. Just Nico and I."

Percy nodded, his grin fading and turning into a grimace as his wounds started to hurt again. "Were there any last words?"

"From who?"

"Kronos."

The name set the almost good mood back to the gloomy one. The air suddenly dropped its nice sunny temperature to a cold one.

"JACKSON! COME BACK HERE! Was all he said." Nico answered with a grimace.

"Oh."

And that ended their 'last words from Kronos' conversation. Nico got out the first aid kit, while Thalia got out a bucket of water. Percy was sitting in a chair, and had to smile when his cousins got out a lot of band aids.

"I don't think band aids will help in this situation," Percy said, amused.

"What about the letters then? You can have one band aid for one line," Nico protested.

Percy looked down on his arms. _One band aid could cover up one line,_ he realized. But the lines would never go away. He had a flashback to the first time they carved the letters:

_"Bring the letters," Kronos snapped to a telekhine.___

_The telekhine snorted and started brining out a huge suitcase. Percy vaguely wondered what was in there, before Kronos opened it. He saw a tiny bucket filled with a substance he didn't know. A small bottle filled with the same substance for a refill. A metal iron that had a handle and a rectangular shape on top. That, and the chains. He now knew what the chains were for.___

_"Chain him," Kronos ordered, as he took out the things.___

_Two telekhines started to take the two chains and wrap it around Percy's hands and the chair. He struggled, wanting to get out of Tartarus as quickly as he had come. He couldn't even move. The entire demigod training had gotten him nowhere at all.___

_"You know what these will do Jackson?" Kronos said, a cruel smile plastered along his face. "These will make you relive every single moment in Tartarus if you ever get out. In your dreams and in random moments. And the other scars inflicted on you will remain with you forever. Souvenirs you might say. It only takes one letter to do the damage. The others are just for fun."___

And before Percy could start feeling the pain, he could feel someone shaking his shoulder roughly. "It's no use healing me. They'll remain permanently."

Percy could see Thalia's sad eyes as they wandered over to the letters. Nico stared at him with those black eyes of his in shock.

**In Olympus, in the cube: ****  
**  
It had been at least a few hours since the emergency protocol.

"You can conjure up anything in here, why can't you conjure up a door?" One occupant complained.

The gods stayed silent. And that was when Apollo heard it. A prayer. He recognized the voice. Thalia's. _Apollo, Percy's escaped Tartarus, help him now, he's hurt._ He tried to reply, send a message back, but it seemed that all telepathic messages couldn't be sent out. He banged the wall in frustration, but a small smile crossed his lips, as he thought about what she said.

_Apollo!_ There was Thalia's voice again, pleading. The sun god closed his eyes. _Apollo he's really hurt! _He desperately wanted to get out of the cube and heal him but couldn't. After that, nothing else was being sent. He sighed in frustration, and he glowed bright. Opening his eyes, he saw people staring at him. The glow toned down, but the anger remained. _Stupid cube, _he thought. _Stupid Athena. Stupid Annabeth. Stupid Tartarus.___

**With Sally in her apartment, two hours before the three cousins came: ****  
**  
After Sally heard the news, she wanted to turn to Paul for help. She looked at the note on the fridge and it said he was out grocery shopping. No amused smiled came to her face. She didn't even register the fact that she should be the one shopping, since he always brought the most expensive ingredients, not the cheapest. _Percy's gone,_ she thought, a tear trickling down to her cheek.

Sally walked on the flat surface to Percy's room. She took a deep breath and opened the door. It was the same as always, messy, with a hidden candy stash under the pillow. She opened his cupboard and saw that all his armor was put up neatly along with all his weapons. At least she knew the reason how Paul found out.

A cell phone ring was what startled her. She shakily grabbed the phone and put it too her ear.

"Is this Sally Blofis, wife of Paul Blofis?" A person on the other line asked.

"Yes," Sally said, trying to get herself together.

"I'm afraid Paul has died."

Sally nearly dropped the phone on the floor. "How?" Was all she could manage to say.

"He was walking towards the beach, when a huge tide came and brought him to the sea. Then... He drowned."

The phone dropped on the floor. Sally didn't even bother to sit down on a comfy chair. She sat down on the ground, and sobbed. Two of the most important people of her life were gone. Tears fell quicker as she kept on thinking about Percy and Paul.

"H-Hell-o?" The phone was definitely broken when it dropped.

With a small beep, the person on the other end hung up. Sally suddenly stood up. She was going to the sea that drowned Paul. And she knew exactly who to blame in this case. Poseidon was the only person in mind who would do something like that.

Sally washed her face with water, and wiped a tear away after. She took the elevator downstairs and started to walk towards her car. The Prius was supposed to be Paul's car, but now it was for both of them. She revved up the engine and started driving.

**A/N: Sorry for the kind of short chapter, hope you enjoyed it either way. The reunion might not have been my best, so sorry about that. We reached 200 reviews, thanks so much, and all the support, I really appreciate it!******

**Haut Banane (Guest): It's going to be random updates, but all updates will be either less or more than one week. Never more than two weeks.******

**Mandi2341: I didn't exactly make the beat, so you can just make it up.******

**Skye222: Sorry, I'm not really going to do Thalico...******

**Pensius: At the beginning, I said no romance, really sorry, but I'm not going to.******

**angelfabeth: I've never really tried, the song was more of writing lines and then finding words that rhyme. Thanks for the suggestions though, maybe I will.**


	9. Family Bonding

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 8

It took at least an hour for Sally until she reached her destination: the beach Paul had drowned and died in. She stayed in her car while she parked it in the parking lot. She didn't get out, and instead, kept sitting on her seat, watching the rhythmic waves, and wondering how her husband exactly drowned in the beach.

There were no sign of police anywhere, and Sally wondered where they were. Wasn't this considered a crime scene? She sighed deeply, the emotional stress making her sick. _Of course not,_ she thought with slight bitterness. _It was an 'accident.'_Then Sally sat up straighter. She completely forgot about the hospital they must have brought Paul in. She quickly started up the engine again, and drove to the nearest hospital.

"Apollo," Sally whispered, praying to the god. "I know Paul's dead, but is there any chance that you could heal him?"

No answer. Sally frowned while driving, her thoughts clouded with sadness. She nearly forgot to brake for a red light. Her shoe slammed on the brakes, the car making a screeching noise as it came to an abrupt stop.

The car behind her honked at Sally, and she looked startled, as if she had snapped out of a daydream. The irony of that was that she actually was in a daydream. _Percy,_ she thought, sadness and anger mixing forces, as she accelerated when she saw the green light. _And now Paul, _she thought again, the same emotions playing in her mind.

Sally looked at the sight in front of her, and sighed in relief as she saw the hospital in front of her. She stepped out of the Prius, locked it, and then started walking shakily towards the hospital. She didn't even know for sure if Paul was admitted to this hospital- or any hospital at all.

The hospital doors opened automatically as Sally stepped inside, heading straight for the reception desk. She knew it might be childish, but she crossed her fingers anyways, hoping that Paul might be here. Maybe not alive, but she just needed to see him one last time, when he wasn't in a coffin.

Sally's voice only had a slight tremble as she asked her question: "Is Paul Blofis here?"

"Do you have any relations to him?" The receptionist asked, looking at Sally in surprise.

"I'm his wife," Sally replied crisply.

"Fourth floor, room five hundred and forty."

"Thank you."

And with those words spoken, Sally walked away, happy, but slightly scared at the same time. But then, a voice interrupted her.

"Sally Blofis?" The receptionist questioned, making the said person turn around.

"Yes?" Sally responded, bemused.

"I'm sorry," the receptionist spoke, before returning to another patient.

Those two words. Just two words could mean a lot. Sally nodded, and continued walking to the elevator. She couldn't help the sinking feeling in her chest as she heard those two words. Those two words usually meant something terrible had happened. _Something like death, _she thought heavy-heartedly.

Pressing the button on the elevator for the fourth floor, Sally waited with at least three other people silently. During the silence, she was grieving. She didn't even notice that the three people only had one big eye planted right above the middle of their heads...

The elevator bell dinged, and Sally walked out of the elevator, hurriedly searching for room five hundred and forty in a rush. She noticed that instead of walking, she had begun a light run. She blinked twice. She didn't notice a lot of things lately...

"There's nothing we can do," a doctor spoke. "He's dead. He died a long time ago."

Sally stopped her strides, and retraced her steps. She looked through the blinds and something- no someone, made her freeze.

It was Paul. Sally looked at her now dead husband in shock. He looked so pale and surprised, as if he never knew he would die so young. But at the same time, he looked sort of peaceful, as if he had accepted that the Fates had cut his string. It was all so confusing.

Sally knew she should go in there, and actually take one last look at her husband without him being in a coffin. She gave it four thoughts before she made up her mind. She took a deep breath and started placing her hand on the door handle.

"Sally!" A voice came out behind her.

Sally spun around, her heart racing as she did so. She sighed in relief when she saw it was just an IM.

"What are you doing in a hospital?" The voice was now identified as Thalia's.

Sally opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Now Thalia looked concerned.

"Sally?" Thalia asked again, looking concerned.

"I-It's Paul," Sally managed shakily. "He drowned, and now he's dead."

Thalia's expression changed from concerned to angry. But then she saw three shadows. She narrowed her eyes once she saw it were Cyclopes. "Sally, behind you are three Cyclopes. You've got to get back home. I'm sorry."

Sally looked at the window and it reflected back her image like a mirror. She used it to look behind her, and saw that Thalia was right. Three shadows, also known as Cyclopes were seen. She nodded, and cut off the image, hastily making her way back to the elevator.

"Excuse me miss," one of the Cyclopes faked its voice, and followed Sally to the elevator.

Sally hastened her pace, and reached the elevator quickly, the elevator doors closing on the Cyclopes. She sighed, leaning back on the railing as it made its way down back to the lobby. She didn't even get to see Paul one last time.

Knowing that the Cyclopes would follow her, Sally made her way to the car. She didn't look behind, as she revved up the engine and drove away.

**With the three cousins, in Sally's apartment, before the IM:****  
**  
"Percy," Thalia said, as she fished a drachma out of her pocket. "We're going to IM your mom, ok?"

Percy nodded, barely even listening, but agreeing to whatever Thalia said.

"And uh, Nico can go make some food," Thalia continued.

And then Percy cracked a small grin. "Nico in the kitchen is a bad idea."

Nico looked offended, and started protesting. "I can toast bread and other stuff as well."

"That's brilliant," Thalia said, sarcasm dripping of her words heavily. "But I don't feel like eating bread. Or whatever other things you can do."

"Pancakes?" The son of Hades offered.

Thalia laughed and nodded. "I would love to see your pancakes."

Nico ignored the sarcasm and started to walk toward the kitchen, a grin forming on his face.

"I'm going to go to the washroom to IM your mom," Thalia suddenly spoke.

Percy looked up, his haunting green eyes staring at Thalia. He wanted her to stay; he didn't want to be alone. But then he thought of his mother. He wanted to see her as well. He nodded once again, watching her retreating figure as she walked to the bathroom.

Closing his eyes, Percy couldn't help but sigh in relief as he opened them and saw himself in his own home. He looked at the direction of the kitchen and heard a beating noise of a mixer. Smiling, he drummed his fingers on the couch he was lying on.

One blink. That was all it took, before Percy's eyes closed longer than any other blink. A flashback...

_"Let's go teach you some archery today," Kronos sneered, as he dragged Percy along.__Percy didn't complain as he was dragged along the cold floors.__"My way," Kronos continued, stopping once they got to a target.__"Which is?" Percy blurted out, cursing his ADHD.__Kronos just smiled eerily. He pulled out a bow, one arrow, and a whip. "This way. You only get one shot at this. If you hit the target then you won't get the whip. If you do..."__Kronos left the sentence trailing off there, and Percy could already figure out the rest. Even though it was only a few hours, they had already done 'fun' activities constantly.__Percy swallowed his own blood mixed with spit, and took the bow cautiously. Once he was certain it wasn't going to scratch his hands with razor claws, he gripped it steadily. He took the arrow, and notched it carefully.__Kronos saw Percy's posture. It was wrong, which meant he would fail. Not giving out any hints, he waited, his whip in his hand.__Percy tried remembering any archery lesson he ever had and stored that in his brain. He shifted his footing, and directed the arrow in the middle. There were no wind currents, so it was safe.__Taking a deep breath, Percy let go of the arrow, and it flew with a loud twang. The arrow whizzed through all the booing monsters and hit...__The outer ring. Silence fell heavily upon the crowd, and Kronos had a stunned look on his face. The whip slipped out of his grip and fell on the floor with a soft thud.__"Impossible," Kronos whispered, his cruel face twisted up in shock and fury..._Percy woke up with a start, cold beads of sweat pouring down his face. He could hear Thalia talking to someone, and the sound of sizzling and smoke arising from the kitchen. _I'm safe,_ he reassured himself. _I'm home..._

"The pancakes are done!" Nico yelled from the kitchen, a happy tone to it.

Thalia had stopped talking to the person. She came out of the bathroom, a pale look on her face.

"What is it?" Percy immediately sprung to conclusions.

"Sally will explain when she gets home," were the only words the two cousins got from Thalia.

Nico was too excited about Percy being alive and right in front of him, and the fact that he had made pancakes by himself to see what the situation was.

"Are they blue?" Percy asked, trying to ignore his flashback and Thalia's pale face.

"Yup," Nico responded, showing them the pancakes.

"You'll have to bring the pancakes to me," the son of Poseidon called out. "I can't exactly walk."

Nico just nodded, got out a plate, and put two pancakes in it. He brought the plate over to Percy.

"Thanks Nico," Percy said, not sure what else to say.

Percy had a good reason. The pancakes were too blue. It looked like Nico had used the entire bottle of blue dye. He forced a grateful smile, and started taking one bite...

Only to spit it out on the plate afterwards. Nico looked confused.

"Nico," Percy started. "Did you use sugar or salt?"

"They all looked the same to me," Nico shrugged.

"So you let us eat it, knowing that you used salt instead sugar?"

Nico shrugged again, grinning widely. Percy smiled back; he couldn't stay mad for long. Thalia, however, was a completely different matter.

"Nico di Angelo!" Thalia yelled, her silverware clattering on the floor noisily. "What ingredients did you use, salt, flour, and rotten eggs, with expired milk?"

"No actually," Nico responded, looking at Thalia. "I used salt, flour, eggs, and milk."

"Huzzah," Thalia muttered before finding something else to eat.

Percy felt a pang in his chest as he heard the simple word 'huzzah.' He remembered that Mr. D used to say that. And Mr. D meant Camp Half-Blood. And camp used to mean home...

Thalia didn't realize that her one word would hurt Percy so much. Maybe it was because she was in a different section of the house. She still couldn't believe Paul was dead. _And Sally knows that Percy is in Tartarus,_she thought, not imagining how much pain Ms. Jackson was in.

The sound of the door opening startled everyone, Percy nearly falling out of the couch in the process.

"Mom?" Percy asked once he heard the sound of footsteps.

Sally stopped in her tracks. There was only one person who called her mom. _Percy,_ she thought in surprise. _But he's in Tartarus...__  
_  
"We helped him escaped Sally," Thalia said to her. "Percy's on the couch."

It sounded so random; Sally didn't know what to do. She walked over to the couch and froze.

Sitting right in front of her was Percy. Sally didn't know whether she should laugh or cry. She decided to do both, as her son smiled at her. She ran over to the couch, and hugged him, ruffling up his unruly hair.

"I missed you mom," Percy whispered quietly.

"I missed you too Percy," Sally replied, stroking his hair, as if afraid of losing him again. "I missed you too."

**A/N: Sorry for the late update and any OOCness. Even though I only reply to some reviews, I appreciate all the support! And there is an important note on the rating:****I'm going to change the rating, because I think, and this other person who left a review, that the first chapters of torture were too cruel. I'm going to change it to M, but it is just because of the first few chapters and a few flashbacks, nothing else. So all the T (or other) readers who are not mentally disturbed, feel free to continue reading it, and all the guests, who don't want to go to the M section, you can just go to my profile through my other stories and see the story there.**

**And just because the rating will be changed to M, doesn't mean that the characters are going to start swearing a lot, and it doesn't mean any lemons, I don't write those anyways. It will be just for cruelty and torture, that's all. I'm going to leave it T for a few days, just so Guests know this, and then my next update will be in the M section.**

**grayhound (Guest): He didn't leave it at Tartarus, he just left it where he was standing, so it's not in Tartarus, more like out of it.**

**wolfeclipse25: Just wait for the upcoming chapters.**

**Guest: Thank you for your input.**

**BadassBatman: Thanks!**

**trollalalala: I'm not really sure it's original, but thanks anyway!**


	10. Knowing

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians******

**A/N: Read the A/N at the bottom for the rating info. The flashback will just be some explanations, not torture.****  
**  
Chapter 9

Sally was the first one to break off the hug. She stared at her son, but still kept the bright smile on her face. She temporarily forgot all about Paul as she noticed all the scars and bruises that were still fresh from Tartarus, some even reopening and making the entire carpet red.

"Nico, could you fetch a bucket of water please?" Sally asked, tearing her gaze off the bruises and scars. "There should be a bucket on the cabinet on the left."

The son of Hades nodded solemnly, and started making his way into the kitchen that smelled suspiciously of his ruined pancakes. Nico looked around, and true to Sally's words, the cabinet on the left had a bucket in it.

The bucket made Nico laugh. A lot. He thought it would just be an ordinary bucket, but he was wrong. It was a bright blue pail that you would see little kids play with on the beach. And right on the sides had a huge sticker saying: Percy's Blue Bucket.

Still laughing, Nico took out 'Percy's Blue Bucket' from the cabinet and walked back to the living room with a grin on his face.

Thalia noticed the grin straightaway. She looked down on what her cousin was holding and understood why Nico was grinning. The huge sticker words were noticeable for anyone to see.

"Nico," Sally spoke, her voice with an amused and happy tone to it. "Did you fill it up with water?"

Nico's grin faded, while Thalia'a only increased. With only a sheepish smile to his face, he left again.

"And Thalia?" Sally spoke kindly.

"Yes Mrs. Jack- Sally?" Thalia answered, stumbling over her words.

"Do you have any ambrosia or nectar on you?"

"Yup," Thalia responded, popping the p. She searched her pockets until she found a bag of ambrosia. "It's here."

Smiling gratefully, Sally took the bag and opened it rather hurriedly as she stared at her son once again. She took out two ambrosia squares, before gently giving them to Percy.

"Here it is," Nico bought the now heavy bucket filled with water to the living room.

"Thank you," Sally responded while taking the bucket. She turned to her son, who had already eaten the ambrosia squares. "I'm going to pour the water over you ok?"

Percy just nodded numbly, remembering the water torture he had experienced, and wincing every so slightly. He had already eaten the ambrosia squares so he didn't know why his scars weren't healing. He only felt himself feel slightly reenergized. An energy drink might have done more effect in this case.

"I hope this works," Sally whispered as she lifted the bucket up and splashed the entire contents on her son.

Sally watched with a hopeful expression as she saw the water splash on her son. She saw the water absorbing in Percy's scars and bruises, trying to heal them.

It didn't do anything at all. Percy saw the water fall to the floor, as if it were defeated. He grimaced as he looked down on himself, maybe hoping that the scars would heal.

"Why won't they heal?" Nico asked as the bucket hit the ground with a loud thud. "What's wrong?"

"I-I had a flashback," Percy muttered slowly. "Before I mean. Kronos said that the scars would never heal. I'm guessing he meant any method at all."

And that was when Sally Jackson broke down. Tears escaped from her eyes as the final truth finally dawned on her. Her son had gone to Tartarus. He had been tortured, and his scars could never heal. And even though Percy could escape Tartarus, Paul would remain dead.

"I'm going to use the washroom," Thalia said awkwardly, not interfering the mother and son time.

"Me too," Nico added, but then after seeing his female cousin's glare, he added, "after Thalia of course."

Satisfied, Thalia left, leaving the others behind. Nico hurriedly followed her, as the other two occupants glanced at him.

When the two cousins finally left, Percy turned to his mother. She hugged him again, tears soaking his already dripping torn shirt. She stroked his hair comfortingly, still not believing that her son was still here, alive.

"Mom I'm here," Percy mumbled, confirming her happy thoughts. "I'm alive, and I'm here."

"I know," Sally responded, her falling tears becoming less and less. "It's just that you're not the only important thing I lost in my life."

"What?" Percy asked, bemused at her response. And that was when he noticed who was missing in the apartment. "Where's Paul?"

"H-He's dead."

The son of Poseidon froze and became still and stiff. Sally noticed this, and looked at him, worried. She felt the shuddering and the way his eyes closed, only to open again with one eye dark green and the other was gold.  
_  
__"Tell me Percy," Kronos spoke as he took off his gloves. "When do you think you'll be free?"___

_Percy's bloodied lip opened as he answered unwillingly, not wanting to be hurt again. "I have no idea."___

_Kronos snorted, sitting down on a chair. "My instincts tell me that something good is going to happen."___

_"As long as it's not anyone but monsters, its fine with me," the son of Poseidon responded, his lips curling up in a small smile, as he knew that good for Kronos meant bad for him.___

_"Oh don't worry," the Titan Lord spoke again, not even surprised. "It's not your family."___

_Percy breathed out in relief too soon. He couldn't help but look at Kronos' gleam in his eye, and he shuddered involuntarily. He wanted to look somewhere else, maybe a cyclopes' one huge ugly eye, but he couldn't. His eyes were transfixed to the gold eyes.___

_"Real family that is," Kronos continued, sneering it, with a sadistic tone. "I think it's going to happen to your..." He lashed for extra effect. "Step-family. Or should I say stepfather?"___

_"No," Percy's voice cut out through the silence. _Not Paul,_ he thought, thinking of his stepfather and his mother, happy together. "Not Paul."___

_"Who said I was going to do it? I said I had a good feeling. Maybe Poseidon would drown him when he's going to the beach...?"___

_It never occurred to him that Kronos could have been right...___

Now, in the present time, Percy already had a feeling that Paul could have drowned in the beach. He blinked and his eyes went back to normal. His eyes gazed at his mother, who was staring at him in worry... And horror?

Pushing the feeling aside, Percy asked his question. "How did Paul die?"

"In a beach," Sally finally spoke, worry still in her eyes. "He drowned."

"Poseidon," Percy said angrily, storing the information. "He did it right?"

Sally nodded slowly, still embracing Percy in a hug.

"And that's why you don't interfere," Thalia listed off the final reason, and glared at Nico, and they both stepped into the tiny living room.

"You sound like Annabeth," Nico joked, before realizing his fatal mistake.

At the mention of the name, Percy's head snapped up. Once he saw it was just his cousins, he calmed down by only a small fraction.

"You idiot," Thalia shoved Nico. "Don't mention that name ever again."

The son of Hades nodded, sending an apologetic look towards Percy. He didn't even notice the look.

"I'll make some blue pancakes for all of you," Sally suddenly said, breaking the tense silence.

"I think I used up all of the blue dye," Nico replied sheepishly.

"I always have at least two extra bottles," Sally smiled, before patting her son's back and walking towards the kitchen.

When Sally was gone, the cousins rushed to Percy. It wasn't that they couldn't do that when she was there, it was just that they didn't want to interfere.

"Perce," Nico started, feeling ashamed. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Percy sighed heavily, and smiled at his cousins.

All of them knew it was fake, but to prevent any more problems, the cousins smiled back genuinely.

"I had a flashback," Percy announced, mumbling it so ever so slightly.

The two cousins stared at Percy, wanting and not wanting to hear more.

"Kronos said he had a good feeling, and that Poseidon could drown Paul in a beach," Percy continued.

Thalia was slightly pale as she spoke: "That's what Sally told me."

"And that's the death that I felt."

"That's it," Thalia stated rather lazily as she continued. "Our parentage has corrupted us."

Percy snorted, as he laughed, agreeing with his cousin all the way. He stared at them, and his mind wandered off to Kronos and Tartarus. He reminded himself that he was free, and that he was home. Yet, he could still remember the Titan Lord saying that Tartarus was his home. The one that he would stay in forever...

"You're wrong," Percy whispered, and felt the eyes of his two cousins on him. He smiled at them, but it didn't reach his eyes. "The gods have corrupted us."

"True, true," Nico spoke, adding in to the conversation. "I still can't believe that Hades, and Artemis voted for you to not go to Tartarus though."

Thalia frowned at the mention of Artemis. "I wonder if I'm still her lieutenant."

"You'll never know until you talk to her you know," the son of Poseidon said finally, rolling off the sofa and landing on the ground with a thud. "Ow."

Despite the fact that Percy had winced, his cousins just laughed as he stayed in his falling position. Thalia's sky blue eyes twinkled as she saw her cousin smile. Nico just grinned, showing his teeth he had forgotten to brush.

"Food's ready!" Sally called out from the kitchen.

To Percy, the food was better than the gods' food. To Thalia, it was Elysium. To Nico, it was better than the food in the Underworld. In all, they all agreed that Sally's cooking was the best.  
**  
****In Olympus, inside the cube:**

"I have a brilliant idea," Hades said sarcastically.

Everyone turned to him, confused and irritated at the same time.

"How about we all shut up, and wait till this stupid cube deactivates?" Hades continued, glaring at all the noisemakers irritably.

"I agree with that statement. One huzzah for Hades," Dionysus agreed, slumping on his throne wearily.

"For once, I wish Demeter would start her threats again," Hermes said, grinning at the goddess as she slept.

The 'brilliant idea' didn't do anything except make everyone be quiet for at least a few seconds. After that, everything went haywire again. Apollo sat down next to his sister, who preferred sitting on the ground.

"Artemis," Apollo said her name cautiously.

"Yes?" Artemis turned to her brother, bemused.

"If you had a secret, would you tell me?"

The goddess of the hunt snorted, but then she saw that her brother was serious. "I don't know. It depends what it is I guess." Then her silver eyes narrowed. "Why? What secret do you have?"

"Thalia contacted me," Apollo finally said, before sighing. "She wanted me to heal... Someone."

Artemis got the wrong idea. "Which hunter is hurt? Tell me!"

"No hunter of yours is hurt!" Apollo hissed. He got closer to her, and snapped his fingers, and headphones appeared to cover their ears. "Just wait."

Lyrics played, but it was just Apollo saying 'Percy got out of Tartarus; I don't know how he escaped!'

The reaction was immediate. Artemis stared at Apollo in shock, but then she remembered her lieutenant and her cousin's look when they left. They were desperate to get Percy back, she knew.

"Don't tell anyone?" Apollo whispered pleadingly. "Please?"

"I won't," Artemis responded, knowing the consequences.

The god of the sun breathed out before coming up with something else. "Swear on the River Styx?"

Artemis rolled her eyes, but nodded. "I swear on the River Styx."

Silence took over the two siblings while noise could be heard from almost everyone. And soon, the sun god took inspiration, and started to talk again.

"Also..." Apollo continued, before seeing the exasperated look on his sister's face. He cracked a small smile before continuing. "Why are you so willing?"

"Zeus is wrong," Artemis spoke, frowning. "He had no right to send Perseus to Tartarus. Even though he is a man, he saved my life. And for that, I am grateful. Now that he escaped, he does not deserve to be hunted by everyone."

"That's true," Apollo nodded, before grinning. "Was my singing awesome?"  
**  
****A/N: Really sorry for the late update, I was busy and I lost track of the days since I updated. Anyway, I said in last chapter that this is going to be changed to M, but I changed my mind:******

**One, because I decided that since the cruel parts are only in the beginning chapters, and I'm going to change the chapters and put warnings every time there's something M rated. I've got some reviews and PM's that it isn't gory enough to be M, so I'm changing the summary to 'very strong T.'******

**So now, whenever there's a cruel part, I'm going to put an A/N in the beginning chapter and put up a warning. I'll do that to the beginning chapters as well. Hope you all understand. Thanks for all the support on a different note!******

**Mandi2341: Sorry, still going to be T, but I'll put up warnings so you, and everyone will know when there's a cruel part.******

**Duon: Well, thanks for reading both stories. You'll see in the upcoming chapters.******

**Malcolm (Guest): Thanks for that, I appreciate it.******

**angelfabeth: Thanks for pointing out that mistake, it was supposed to be don't, so thanks!******

**Sunburn of Darkness: Still going to be T, thanks!****  
**


	11. Tattling

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 10

Artemis groaned, but still couldn't help but chuckle to herself silently as she stared at her brother's smile. She punched him in the arm playfully, while he just stuck his tongue out immaturely.

"You know you love me Artie- that rhymed didn't it?" Apollo switched in mid sentence and whipped out a notebook. He scribbled some words on it, and put it directly in front of his sister's face. "What do you think of that?"

"I think," Artemis paused to slap away the notebook. It landed on the ground without a single sound. "That it was horrible."

"You forgot!" The sun god cried out in happiness.

While his sister looked confused, Apollo smirked smugly- receiving a punch to the arm. He rubbed it pitifully.

"Forgot what?" Artemis narrowed her eyes dangerously.

"About the Artie thing-" Once Apollo saw that his sibling wasn't going to punch him, his eyes widened in realization.

"Don't push your luck little brother."

"You are acting very out of character today Artemis."

The occupants in the cube were starting to stare at the playful bickering of the two siblings.

"That's it!" Zeus bellowed, the entire cube noise coming to an unexpected silence. "Everybody shut the Hades up!"

"Why use my name?" Hades retorted, offended by those simple lines.

"I-"

The king of the gods was interrupted by the entire cube shaking. It was if it was alive and real, because it was shuddering like it got the bad case of the flu. Bricks that the occupants didn't even know existed flew outside one by one as if it were flying saucers going out to Mars.

"The minute we get out of here," Apollo told his sister. "We're going to Sally Jackson's apartment."

"What?" Artemis asked in bewilderment- almost a first in a few centuries. "Why?"

"I have to heal Percy remember?" The sun god answered with small sad smile on his face. "He's injured really badly."

Her invisibility cap on her face, Annabeth didn't mean to spy on the two siblings. She gasped quietly, not meaning for anyone to hear her, but they did.

"Who's there?" Artemis demanded rather fiercely. "Show yourself!"

Footsteps padded loudly, as Annabeth fled towards the nearest exit- the bricks almost gone.

The goddess of the hunt sighed as she snapped her fingers. Most of the people had already left the cube and Olympus in general, so there weren't many people to see. Artemis spotted the daughter of Athena immediately.

And running quicker than Annabeth ever could, Artemis was by the demigod's side in an instant- her eyes narrowing in suspicion and anger.

"You were the one that voted for Percy's banishment weren't you?" Artemis spat, blocking Annabeth's way of escaping. Apollo came soon after, standing tall. "His girlfriend."

Not many people could make Annabeth flinch, but right now, she did. Flinching at the true reminder of her guilt.

"How much did you hear?" Artemis continued, fuming as her silver eyes matched the demigod's grey ones. When Annabeth didn't reply, she spoke again, more demanding this time. "How much?!"

"Just when Lord Apollo said that you and he were going to Sally Jackson's apartment," Annabeth swallowed, but held her ground all the same.

"Well guess what?" Apollo added in. "I wanted to pay my condolences. I wanted to heal Percy afterwards- not your ex-boyfriend of course."

"You have a son named Percy," the goddess of the hunt responded, in disbelief, playing along.

Apollo nodded with a grimace on his face. "He got into a bad fight, so I need to help him. I named him after Percy of course. However," he paused dramatically to look at his sister. "I need another family member with me, so I picked my sister."

It made sense of course, Annabeth knew that. Artemis wanted to go to Sally to say sorry, and Apollo wanted to heal his son. However, she knew it wasn't really the truth. The two siblings saw that her grey eyes betrayed her with curiosity and suspicion.

"Artie we have to go!" Apollo suddenly yelled, checking his watch. "He's going to die if we don't hurry up!"

The daughter of Athena saw a flash of panic in Artemis' eyes. Grey met against silver as they stared at each other- both of them sharp and narrowed.

"Let's go sis," Apollo said worriedly, as he gently pulled Artemis away from the intense stare.

Without even giving a warning, Artemis flashed out- nearly blinding Annabeth. The sun god gave one look at the wisdom's daughter, before flashing out as well. She had closed her eyes on instinct, but some sort of burning feeling stung her eyes; signaling that she had neatly blinded herself. She clenched her fists as she opened her grey eyes again, this time seeing her mother's eyes.

"Annabeth," Athena spoke curtly.

"Mother," Annabeth replied respectfully, bowing and standing upright when Athena made a gesture with her hand.

Two comfy looking chairs appeared on the ruined ground of Olympus. Annabeth hesitantly sat down on one of them, while Athena sat on the other.

"I saw that you were talking to Artemis and Apollo," Athena asked casually, but it felt more of a demand.

"I have," Annabeth answered, sitting straight up in her chair.

"What did they say?"

A flash of Artemis' silver eyes reminded Annabeth not to blurt it all out. However, when she saw her mother's ordering gaze, she felt like she had to obey. She felt rather ashamed of herself, listening to her mother who was the reason for Percy's banishment.

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I heard that they were going to Sally Jackson's apartment, because Apollo had to heal Percy," Annabeth spoke like a tattletale, tatting on the god and goddess.

"Go on," Athena prodded curiously.

"They spotted me, and asked me how much I heard-"

"You told them what you knew?"

"I had no choice."

The goddess sighed and leaned back in the chair, closing her eyes. "Continue."

"Apollo said that they wanted to pay their condolences for Sally, and he had to heal his son- Percy. He named his son after Percy Jackson."

It felt weird for Annabeth to speak out her ex-boyfriend's last name as if he were a stranger. _But he's not,_ she thought to herself. He _was Percy- Seaweed Brain. And my best friend,_ she added sadly.

"It's not him," Athena spoke after some time. "It can't be him."

"Why not?" Annabeth asked curiously, forgetting that she was talking to her mother. "It's-"

"Possible. The only way Perseus can get out of Tartarus is with the rope," Athena sighed deeply, and continued speaking. "However, no one has ever achieved to get the rope without slipping past Hades' security."

"What about Thalia and Nico? They could have slipped past Lord Hades' security, because he let them. He voted for Percy to stay," wisdom's daughter pointed out. "Maybe Percy did escape-"

"Then the Olympian council should have to know about it. Look away now, you don't want to get incinerated."

And with those words being spoken, Athena flashed out to find everyone. Annabeth had closed her eyes, but now reopened them as she saw Olympus in ruins. She remembered her mother's words: 'Then the Olympian council should know about it.'

Guilt flashed in her eyes. She knew what the Olympians would do once they knew about the news. They would hunt him down like prey, capturing him and once again throwing him in Tartarus. Even if throwing him in the deepest pits was wrong the first time, escaping the hell was a crime as well.

"What have I done?" Annabeth's voice cracked as she spoke to no one in particular.

The daughter of Athena had never been on a roller coaster, but now, she felt emotions roll through her like some sort of car ride. She felt sick. First she had voted for Percy to go to Tartarus, and then she had told her mother that he had escaped Tartarus.

The once strong and fearless leader, Annabeth Chase had a choking sound escape her lips. Was she crying? _No,_ she told herself. All the same, a watery substance ran down her cheek, and she saw the teardrop fall to the floor in slow-motion; splashing on the ground casually as if it was rain.

The demigod fell on her knees painfully as if she was being forced to bow like a puppet. More splashes fell on the floor as tears leaked out of her eyelids. She didn't know what to feel. _Shame? Remorse? Guilt?_ She decided on all of them.

The last Olympian stared at the lonely figure in slight sympathy. "Annabeth," Hestia called out softly, tending the low fire. "Come here."

The heroine of Olympus turned around at the sound of the voice. She noticed the goddess, and saw no hatred in her eyes. Rather reluctantly, she stood back upright and walked to the new Olympian.

"Help yourself," Hestia beckoned to the food she displayed that wasn't there a second ago. She smiled kindly, but her expression was serious as she continued talking. "I will not say what you did just now and before was right, because I don't think it was."

Annabeth couldn't help but flinch ever so slightly at the reminder.

"My question is," Hestia paused for a while, before continuing. "Why did you do it? Why did you vote for Percy's banishment, first of all?"

It was one of the first times Annabeth said the words she was speaking now. "I don't know."

The goddess gave Annabeth a curious look, but the demigod refused to say anything else.

"Why did you tell your mother?" Hestia asked a different question this time. When the demigod didn't reply, she went on. "Was it because of Athena? Was it because that you wanted to please your mother?"

When Annabeth's head turned to look at Hestia, the goddess nodded as if what she guessed what right.

"Do you think he will forgive me?" Annabeth asked hopefully.

"No," Hestia said bluntly, which made Annabeth look down at the hearth. "Let me explain this to you. Imagine if you were betrayed by the person you loved and had known for a few years. How would you feel?"

"This is Percy we're talking about though," Annabeth argued. "His fatal flaw is loyalty."

The fire in the hearth shot up, and nearly touched the ceiling. It flickered for a few seconds, before it began lowering its height.

"If his fatal flaw is loyalty, then why did you vote against him? Why were you one of the people who banished him to Tartarus, if you knew you that his fatal flaw is loyalty and that he would never do something like that?"

The flames were now its usual cozy height and warmth. Annabeth knew that she had made Hestia angry. She could still feel the fire's overpowered height and warmth.

"Think about it," Hestia suggested gently, before her expression turned troubled. "I'm sure that the rest of the Olympian council will be here shortly. You can just wait here, you'll be questioned."

As if everyone heard those words, irony struck as all the gods and goddesses flashed in, radiating tons of light in the room. Annabeth made sure to close her eyes.

"You may open your eyes now daughter of Athena," Zeus ordered.

Hesitantly, Annabeth opened her eyes to see all of the Olympians in their newly popped out thrones, with the exceptions of Hestia. She could feel the glares of the gods and goddesses who hadn't betrayed Percy. She looked around and saw that Apollo and Artemis weren't in the room.

"I hear that Perseus Jackson has escaped Tartarus," Zeus spoke loudly as he began the council meeting. And before anyone could speak again, his gaze turned to his brother. "The only way to escape Tartarus is by the rope. Tell me truthfully, did you let Percy escape?"

"No," Hades answered, indirectly speaking the truth.

"Well has anyone entered your domain, got the rope, and then let Perseus escape?"

Hades had good intentions, but his wavering gaze made Zeus curious and angry.

"There was someone on your turf wasn't there? And you LET THEM GET AWAY WITH IT?" Zeus roared angrily, hitting the thunderbolt on the asphalt ground. It sent the ground an electrical shock- something some occupants didn't know was possible until now. He breathed deeply, calming down by a small fraction. "It was di Angelo and Thalia wasn't it?"

"Truthfully, I have no idea who it was," Hades responded calmly, defending both his son and his niece. "And let me ask you this: how do you know Percy escaped?"

"My daughter told me," Athena spoke up, adding to the conversation.

"Well Athena," Hermes spat out the goddess' name in disgust. "How does your daughter know?"

All the gazes that weren't focused on Annabeth were now refocused on the daughter of Athena.

"I heard Lord Apollo and Lady Artemis speak some words," Annabeth answered the unasked question. "He said that his sister and he were going to Sally Jackson's apartment to pay their condolence, and that he had to heal his son called Percy. He named his son after Percy Jackson."

"Are you that heartless?" Hermes asked Annabeth coldly.

Zeus held up his hand. "What do you mean by that Hermes?"

"You're all going to hunt him down like an animal aren't you? He can never live the life he always wants. Tell me this: what has he done wrong? He didn't kill his half-brother, Athena did. Maybe she should go to Tartarus."

The said goddess held her ground and her face remained stoic as she got mentioned ever so casually.

"You will not send my daughter to Tartarus," Zeus said coldly.

"And you will not send Percy back to Tartarus either."

"Escaping Tartarus is a crime," the king of the gods countered, referring to Hermes' earlier question.

Zeus glanced at Hades for confirmation. Rooting for his nephew or not, rules were the rules. He nodded silently, and sent a dark look towards his brother.

"The main cause for Percy to go to Tartarus was because he was framed. He didn't do anything. Now, just because he escaped to get out of Tartarus, he gets put back inside again?"

The rest of the council wisely stayed silent as they watched only a few of the gods argue back and forth.

"What if what Apollo said is true?" Poseidon added. "What if he's telling the truth-"

"Apollo doesn't have a son called Percy," Hera spoke up. "You're supposed to name all the kids you have in this name book." the queen of the gods held up a tiny book, while scrolling through each page. "He has tons of children, but none called Percy. I swear on the River Styx."

Taking Hera's words as the truth while thunder rumbled, Zeus gave Poseidon a pointed look.

"Alright," Zeus finally spoke reluctantly. "Here's the deal. We will not in any way or forms hunt Percy or hurt him. However, if any activity stirs up from him, we will take action."

Words could not express how happy anyone that didn't betray Percy was. Hermes placed a firework from his messenger bag and fired it. A message was written once it exploded: PARTY TONIGHT!

"Council dismissed," Zeus concluded wearily.

**A/N: Really sorry for the late update and any OOCness. Next chapter will be mostly about the three cousins, so don't worry if they weren't in this chapter. Thanks for reaching up to 300 reviews, I really appreciate it, and all the other support as well!******

**L. Lawliet-Rue Ryuzaki: No, this is not Pertemis. Sorry, but I'm not changing my mind about the romance. Thanks!******

**Malcolm (Guest): Thanks again!******

**temporary name 202: You'll see in the upcoming chapters.******

**Stone8325: Thanks, and I wasn't really planning on letting Kronos escape so don't worry, and the rope wasn't left in Tartarus, it was right above it, so he can't escape.******

**Sunburn of Darkness: The upcoming chapters will explain your question.******

**wyvern97: You actually might be correct. Thanks, and possible spoilers, and disappointment, but this will not be a revenge fic.**


	12. Life Source

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians**

**A/N: Flashback in this chapter, so skip of you don't want to read.****  
**  
Chapter 11

"Do you really think it was Poseidon who drowned Paul?" Nico asked with his mouth full of food.

The scraping of the metal cutlery stopped. Nico continued eating, as if he hadn't said anything at all. He knew it was a touchy topic, but he had to know. Either that or he had to personally visit Paul himself.

"I don't know," Percy responded, frowning as he continued eating. "It could be Oceanus..."

"I thought he escaped down to the bottom depths of the ocean?" Sally asked curiously.

"I thought so too," Percy admitted. "Or it could be Poseidon."

"Don't remind me," Sally sighed tiredly. "He voted for you to go to Tartarus, I'm guessing he might be the one that drowned Paul as well."

Silence. Percy was thinking about the statement his mother had said in a hint of confusion and anguish, and suddenly, the pancakes in his mouth tasted like rubber as all the memories hit him like a wave of water crashing down on him.

The son of Poseidon couldn't even stop the next flashback, and he bit his tongue in the process of remembering his time in Tartarus. His eyes closed for only three seconds before they opened again.

Thalia had been staying silent the entire time, watching the life around her. The sky blue eyes were sharp as she stared at all the things that moved. Including Percy's opened and closed eyes. She didn't think much of it at first, but when she took a deeper look, she could see one eye that was a dark green color like seaweed. And the other eye was gold. Exactly like Luke's had been.

"Percy," Thalia whispered, shaking the demigod a little bit. "Come on, wake up. Don't remember."

By now, most conversation between anyone in the apartment had stopped. All eyes were on the son of Poseidon, as no motion except for his shivering as if he'd caught a cold was done.

"King Fishy," Nico yelled in Percy's ear, hoping his cousin would snap out of it.

Any other situation, and that would make both Thalia and Sally laugh, but this was a serious situation. They just stared at the demigod in a quiver of fright as many other methods were used to try and make him wake up.

"Do you know what's wrong?" Sally asked the two demigods as a tear trickled down her cheek.

"Only Apollo can tell, but he didn't answer my prayers," Thalia responded, proceeding to hit him really hard in the back.

"Apollo? Is he another one who betrayed Percy?" Sally inquired rather angrily.

"He isn't actually," Nico answered, hoping that the sun god would appear any second now. "He was one of the gods that voted for him to stay."

It was the two flashes of light that alerted the three occupants in the room. They all shut their eyes on instinct, and Thalia felt the tiniest shimmer of hope in her heart that it was Apollo and Artemis. When she felt the light die down, she opened her eyes and let a small smile grace her lips.

The two siblings were standing there in their teenage form of twelve and eighteen. Sally's eyes widened in slight surprise and shock. She bowed down, but Artemis immediately placed a hand on the mother's shoulder; gesturing for her to stop.

"Lady Artemis," Thalia spoke in a hint of surprise. "I thought only Apollo would come."

"I told her about how Percy escaped Tartarus," Apollo responded, taking a look around the house. "And apparently your friend has heard our conversation."

"What 'friend?'" Thalia asked humorlessly.

"Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, and the official architect of Olympus."

All current activity that was happening had stopped as if Kronos had frozen time himself. Flashes of anger in both Thalia and Nico's eyes passed.

"We don't say that name around here," Thalia said quietly, remembering her 'friend's' betrayal at her cousin, and couldn't help but spit the words out.

Nico nodded, obviously agreeing to Thalia's statement. His eyes glowered at the ground, wanting to obliterate the daughter of Athena into tiny little pieces, so she wouldn't exist.

"Right," Apollo said awkwardly, now knowing the extra information. "I'll try and heal him-"

"He said that his wounds wouldn't heal," Thalia mumbled, remembering his exact words he told her. "I don't know if that includes your type of healing but..."

Positivity was one thing everyone needed. Apollo smiled, but it didn't reach up to his eyes. He nodded, and walked over to where Percy was, examining the demigod in worry. His sister, who was also in the apartment, let concern show in her eyes as she took on all of the demigod's scars and bruises.

"Do you want anything to eat? Pancakes maybe?" Sally asked kindly, as she watched the two siblings.

The goddess of the hunt bit her lip, looking at all the empty plates. Her memory was vague as she recalled Thalia saying that 'Sally's food is the best!' She sighed as she nodded, smiling as she did so.

"I'll help you as my brother," Artemis paused as she stared at him. Apollo was too occupied to look at her. "Helps your son," she finished.

"Its fine," Sally returned the smile reassuringly. "You can stay here."

"I'm sure that my brother doesn't need my help," the goddess stated.

"If you insist..."

Sally walked into the kitchen, getting all the ingredients out again, as the goddess helped her make the blue batter.

"I don't want to be evil, but now that Sally's gone," Nico spoke, fidgeting with his fingers. "Do you really think that Percy can be healed?"

Apollo ran his fingers through his blonde hair worriedly. "I don't know Nico. His scars are deep, and I tried healing him, but it doesn't seem to work. His eyes are also a problem. Are they always like that?"

"I think it's only when he gets a flashback," Thalia said, drumming her fingers on the table nervously. "After the flashback, his eyes get back to normal."

"Is there anything else I need to know about him or his condition?"

"On his arms."

Apollo took off Percy's hoodie carefully, and quietly closed his eyes, breathing deeply as he controlled his anger. Words were engraved on the demigod's arms like deep tattoos that were starting to get infected. Already, blood started leaking out from the letters as if it were spray paint leaking down.

"If that's the case, then he might not wake up," Apollo said, clearly troubled by the old curse.

Thalia's reaction was immediate. "What do you mean?"

"He has to wake up by himself."

Keeping up a mask of neutralism, Thalia just nodded, but truthfully, she was freaking out on the inside. She knew it usually only took a few minutes until her cousin would wake up, and then reality would come to a happy world once again.

It just didn't work that way. Thalia could see that whatever her cousin was subconsciously thinking about, it was truly bad. In fact, it had to be the worst ones yet. It seemed as if he was having a fit, unconsciously, which was a strange sight to see.

The former daughter of Zeus blinked back tears, and she let a grimace enter her features. She couldn't stand seeing her cousin in this from. He looked so fragile. So breakable. So unlike himself. She looked at his open eyes that were glassy and staring at no direction in particular, and winced slightly as she recalled how her dead mother's eyes once got glassy when she had gotten drunk.

"H-He's not supposed to look like that," Nico blurted out, voicing out Thalia's thoughts.

Apollo laughed bitterly. "Welcome to reality. Do you really think it's a happy place of people frolicking around?"

"No," the son of Hades retorted. "People say that babies are being born every minute. How about deaths? Or wars and bombs that don't appear in the newspaper?"

"You guys are on the same side," Thalia said in annoyance. "Chill."

"Technically I'm the opposite of chilling," Apollo pointed out.

"Of course," Nico muttered, and after a stare from the god, he added some extra words. "You're the god of the sun after all."

Apollo decided to end the conversation there, and studied the letters some more. He took out a small rag soaked up with water and wiped away the blood carefully.

"Do you think that maybe if we try to talk to him, he can wake up?" Thalia suggested.

"You can try," Apollo shrugged, squeezing all of the bloody contents of the rag in a bucket, which the water had now turned red.

"Um, okay then..." Thalia started, hoping that she didn't look like a fool as she started speaking to Percy quietly. "I know you might not hear me, but I just wanted to say that you should come back to the land of the living. You're not Nico, but you are Percy- always going to dangerous situations. I just think that you should wake up. It's just another image, so snap out of it."

The god and the two demigods waited with bated breath, hoping that it would work. Nico looked downwards towards the floor, and took deep breaths. Sure he had gotten his cousin back from Tartarus, but while Percy was in a coma-like state, it felt as if it were only making things worse.

"King Fishy," Nico started out, talking to Percy. "I know you can wake up. I might not be the most positive of people, but I'm sure that Thalia will kill me if I say anything negative. So, uh, your eyes are creeping me out, green and gold, so yeah..." He finished it awkwardly.

**Flashback:****  
**  
"Rule number one," Kronos barked, taking out his whip as if he were a circus instructor hitting the animals. "Don't talk back-"

"Is this school?" Percy blurted out.

"Or else you'll get this... Interesting new weapon," Kronos continued, ignoring the demigod's outburst. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Yes sir," the demigod replied sullenly.

The Titan lord hit the whip on the demigod's shoulder, making a rippling noise as the sound echoed throughout the empty pit. Percy gave a small gasp in pain, as blood trickled down his shoulder like a small stream of a river. He felt drowsy, as the blood gushed down on the asphalt, making the grey floor turn blood red.

"Do. You. Understand!" Kronos shouted angrily, making Percy wonder if the Titan had anger issues.

"Yes sir," Percy said through gritted teeth, refusing to scream no matter how much it hurt.

"Good," the titan said simply. "Rule number two, don't ask for anything at all. No food, water, not anything. You don't need any food and water to survive here anyways, and if you ever do go back..." Kronos chuckled darkly. "Well I'm pretty sure that you'll be abandoned by your friends and family."

"How can you be so... Sure?" Percy rasped weakly, his eyes straining to look at Kronos.

"YOU DON'T TALK BACK!" Kronos roared. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. "Is that understood?"

Nodding, Percy risked a sharp intake of breath and continued his staring at the interesting asphalt that was the only thing that didn't hurt him in any way or form. He didn't dare try to say anything, even though his ADHD was making it difficult for him to stay still and silent at the same time.

"Rule number three, the last rule of all," Kronos spoke, catching Percy's attention. The Titan smiled grimly, showing his teeth. "You don't escape Tartarus unless I say so."

Percy tried to avoid saying that all clichéd evil bad guys said that and ended up getting rescued, but it seemed that getting rescued would only be a false hope.

Absentmindedly, the demigod could hear a voice in the back of his subconsciousness.  
_  
__'King Fishy. I know you can wake up. I might not be the most positive of people, but I'm sure that Thalia...'__  
_  
The son of Poseidon's subconscious felt like he was stuck in a coma; almost like it was in a prison cell, but right here and now, he could feel himself get free, as if someone had led a jailbreak. He kept on listening to the voice that he recognized as his cousin's.

_'Will kill me if I say anything negative. So, uh, your eyes are creeping me out, green and gold, so yeah...'__  
_  
That was the end of that statement. In the back of Percy's mind, there was a sort of implanted camera that didn't run by any batteries. When his eyes finally closed towards unconsciousness as the whip hit him one more time, the implantation shut off, and the flashback ended.

**Reality:****  
**  
"I think it worked," Apollo said incredulously, as Percy blinked and his two different coloured eyes shuttered closed before reopening to their natural green colour.

"It did," Thalia confirmed with a grin, hugging her cousin gently as he offered a weak shaken up smile.

"The food is ready!" Sally called out from the kitchen, bringing out the freshly made pancakes that were on the plate.

The goddess of the hunt followed the mother to the living room and was flabbergasted to see that Percy was awake and alive. She gave a small smile as she set the plate down on the table, giving a nod of acknowledgment towards the son of Poseidon.

It was only then, when Artemis really realized how bad his time on Tartarus was. She could see from the blood soaked T-shirt he was wearing that it was worse than she assumed it was. She could already see some gashes started to reopen and gush like the waterfalls she had seen during the moonlight.

"Can you heal him?" Sally was asking Apollo, glad that her son had woken up.

"I'm trying my best," Apollo reassured her, although he was having trouble to believe that statement himself.

Sally could clearly see that the sun god wasn't being entirely truthful. She pursed her lips, but didn't press on the matter, seeing no point in doing so. Instead, she took a plate of pancakes, poured tons of syrup on them, and gave the plate to her son.

"Thanks," Percy smiled as he took the plate from his mother. He grabbed the fork on his right hand and the plate on the other, but when he felt the carving injury spark, he accidentally dropped it.

Luckily, the plate was made out of carton, so the pancakes were still eatable as it lay in the carton plate as if waiting to be eaten. Sally picked up the plate, as Thalia ran over to the kitchen to get a new fork.

"Are you feeling okay?" Sally asked Percy, feeling his temperature on his forehead in worry.

"I'm fine," Percy tried to push the hand away, but he didn't have enough energy to do so.

A cold feeling pushed against Nico's heart, and he went cold. That was a feeling of when someone near him was starting to die. His eyes widened as he realized who it might be. He stared at Percy, and could actually feel the life force draining away like a slow boat to Hades.

"Apollo," Nico said urgently, talking quickly. "Percy's life force is draining away. You have to try your best-"

"To heal him," Apollo finished gravely. "Artemis, I need your help with this one."

The goddess turned her head towards her brother. "You're the god of healing-"

"And you're my sister. I need one more god to pour some life force into him."

"Is that even possible?"

Staying silent, no one said a word. If she didn't cry before, Sally certainly cried now, tears pooling out of her eyelids like raindrops falling out the sky.

"I don't know," Apollo said quietly. "But it can't hurt to try."

The goddess of the hunt nodded, connecting her hand with her brother's and placing both of theirs on the demigod's forehead. They chanted some Greek words, which even the two cousins couldn't understand.

Golden and silver light combined forces as they shone together brightly on the demigod who was already unconscious. Whether it was because he was out cold, or if he was already paying a visit to Charon, they would never know unless they waited.

The two siblings waited with impatience. It was only now of the decision of whether the magic would decide to actually heal him or let him die. In other words, would the Fates be kind or evil?

"Come on Percy," Thalia whispered repeatedly. "Come on..."

The gods pulsed more energy into the light, and eventually, the demigods and the clear-sighted mortal had to close their eyes due to it shining so radiantly.

"Stay with us Perce," Apollo muttered, focusing intently on the light, and feeling slightly weaker.

The light that the siblings had created dimmed slightly. They had used too much power in one go. Artemis herself was starting to tire out as she felt like eating one of 'Sally's memorable pancakes' as Thalia had put it.

"I don't think he's dying anymore," Nico stated bluntly, as he reopened his eyes.

Thalia's eyes shone in happiness as she heard the news. "When will he wake up?"

"It should be a few minutes," Apollo stated thoughtfully. "One hour maximum."

"And then he'll be awake?" Sally asked.

It was Artemis who confirmed the answer. "And then he'll be awake." Her eyes wandered to the stack of pancakes on the table. "And in the meantime we can discuss-"

"And eat at the same time," Apollo said with a grin. "Perfect."

"A fresh new batch," Thalia said dreamily, already getting out another plate and serving herself.

Artemis saw that with the exception of Percy, everyone was already beginning to dig in the food. Even Sally seemed to be taking small bites, but her head kept on turning towards her demigod son, meaning that she was still concerned.

She sighed, and as she ate the food, she couldn't help but feel better after she had healed Percy. She knew he was supposed to be a boy. She respected him though. She didn't like him in the 'love' way that Aphrodite kept on blabbering about.

No. The goddess mused as she took another bite, savouring the taste as she swallowed it down. Maybe if they could become friends. Then maybe, just maybe, her opinion on boys might just change.

"It's good isn't it?" Thalia asked Artemis, pouring more syrup on her lunch.

"It is," Artemis nodded approvingly, sending a smile to Sally. "Your food matches the ambrosia and nectar."

"That's what Percy once said," Sally said fondly. "I-"

"HE'S AWAKE!" Nico yelled out loudly in excitement, stopping all conversations and starting the walks to the sofa of where the son of Poseidon lay.  
**  
****A/N: I'm really sorry about the late update, but I hope the length made up for it. I've started school, so my updates are going to be later than usual. Some of you might be confused with the whole flashback thing, but it'll explain in future chapters. Thanks for all the support!**

**TheGirlThatWasOnFire444: No, I think Gaea rising is too clichéd, and even though some clichés can be good, I don't think I'll have her rise.**

**Toner of ShadoWs: There might be some differences between the actual book and this story.****Andromeda Luna: I think I just realized as well. Thanks for pointing that out, so now I have more options to decide how the story goes. Not really much bonding here, but I'll add some in the later chapters.**

**Pandastyle (Guest): Thanks, I'll definitely be completing the story!****Guest: I know, I was just using the wrong words so that it could match the story with a quote. Thanks!**

**Bobby Corwen: I didn't really want to make it 'creative' but, well if you think it that way, then thanks!**


	13. Of Voices and Nightmares

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 12

"Perce," Apollo called out, waving his hand in front of Percy's face childishly. "You there?"

"Unh..." Percy groaned, trying to sit up. "I feel like I just died and woke up again.

The son of Hades barked out a laugh that sounded amused. "You just did exactly that actually."

Percy looked confused, as he stared at Apollo and Artemis. At the sight of the moon goddess, he backed up a little, stifling a groan as he felt his bad arm move slightly.

"Apollo and Artemis are here," Thalia spoke up cheerfully.

"I know," Percy mumbled, still seeing the flashbacks from before. "I'm not blind."

Sally Jackson winced at her son's words. She knew in his time at Tartarus, there could always be this slightest chance of being handicapped. She strode forwards, sitting down next to Percy, and making sure she wasn't hurting him, she hugged him tightly. The third or fourth time that day.

"So what did you mean about me dying?" Percy asked bluntly.

"I could feel your life source drain away," Nico explained. "Artemis and Apollo healed you."

A grateful look flashed in Percy's eyes as he stared at the two Olympians. He smiled genuinely, nodding his head in respect for the two.

"You're welcome," Apollo spoke, speaking in response to Percy's thanks.

Artemis just nodded her head in acknowledgment and response, watching him carefully.

"Right," Thalia said loudly, hoping that the awkward moment could stop as everyone just stared at each other without knowing what to do. "We were just eating pancakes."

A different smile replaced the genuine one. More of a playful along with childish smile at that. Percy was about to run towards the direction of the aroma that seemed to be covering the entire house. -he remembered his injuries at the last moment.

"I know he's a bastard, I hate him too," Apollo said sympathetically, ignoring the look from his sibling.

"It seems that naming you Perseus did nothing," Sally spoke softly.

Movements and conversations stopped as they stared at the mother. She shook her head gently, implying that she didn't mean anything by that.

"It did," Percy responded, breaking the silence. "I came out of every situation I'd been in alive didn't I?"

"But who knows how many more you'll be in?" Sally asked the unknown quietly.

"The Fates do," the son of Poseidon answered with his lips quirking up in a small grin.

"Still the same smart idiot as before," Thalia said, her eyes lighting up at that information.

_They think you've changed...__  
_  
Words rang out like annoying echoes, and Percy winced slightly from the noise being too loud for his liking. It didn't go unnoticed by Apollo, but the god let it slide.  
_  
__Monster...__  
_  
There it was again. Monster, monster, monster. Bang bang bang. Echoes... The words echoed in his mind like a nuclear explosion wiping out every word he had learned and replaced it with one word only: monster.

_You're a bastard now you know...? Your daddy doesn't love you. You were always a bastard from the beginning...__  
_  
"Not true, not true," Percy mumbled softly, refusing to believe the voice in his head that sounded familiar.

"What is?" Nico was staring at his cousin curiously.

"Nothing," Percy responded, smiling fakely.

Fake smiles could be brought in an instant. Nico nodded, reassured. The others were currently doing something else, which Percy was glad of. He didn't like the attention he was getting because he was brought back from the dead.

"Percy!" Thalia, who was across the room for some unknown reason shouted. She closed the distance between them, her headphones in her ears. She bobbed her head up and down. "Listen to the beat!" She paused to insert one of them to Percy's ear. She grinned; her smile radiant and she tapped her fingers on her lap. "It's cool right?"

"Yup," Percy responded, not bothering to tell his cousin that the volume was nearly destroying his eardrums. He offered a weak smile, as Thalia took the headphones off. "Thanks."

"Always happy to kill your ears," the ex daughter of Zeus waved, as she strode off.

_Kill? Nice cousin you have there.__  
_  
The voice was back, and could even be considered louder than Thalia's music.

"Shut up," Percy hissed under his breath, feeling sick.

Kill, kill. Murder, murder. Just like Poseidon murdered Paul. Not only a bastard. A bastard _with a murder-kill-murder-kill father-daddy-dad-daddy-father. Not bad for a guy who got tortured in Tartar sauce. Tartarus IS your home. Remember those words clearly Perseus Jackson. Happy endings? Naive thought. Happy ending in Tartarus? Your homey-homie-homey home? Reality meets you head-on. Fates control your life? No. Kronos controls your life? Yessir...__  
_  
**On Olympus, the Throne Room:****  
**  
"All the gods that aren't going to Hermes' party stay here," Zeus spoke loudly, tiredly waiting for all the Olympians to clear out.

Flashes of light appeared and disappeared as the Olympians who stayed loyal to Percy disappeared in their colours of choice. Zeus stared around the room grumpily, seeing only some gods and goddesses on their thrones, looking bored and guilty at the same time.

"Ares, Dionysus, Athena, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Demeter, and Hera," Zeus continued, feeling powerful with his lightning bolt next to his side. "Did any of you see a flaw in my speech I had to Hermes."

Poseidon shook his head, but it was to himself. He felt that his younger brother was too prideful for his own good. He remained silent as he saw no one spoke up or raised their hands.

"I didn't swear on the River Styx!" Zeus responded exasperatedly, feeling silly as he saw someone snickering. Poseidon of course. "So I want all of you to go across the country to search for Perseus."

The snickering stopped immediately. It was replaced with an incredulous look from the sea god. Poseidon started to protest, but before he could, Zeus held a hand up.

"All in favour?" The ruler of the gods asked.

Ares, Athena, Dionysus, and Zeus himself raised their hands. The king of the skies looked around with a flabbergasted expression, which would have been amusing in a situation, if it wasn't this one.

"That's half," Zeus glowered, not pleased with the results at all. "All of you voted for Perseus to go to Tartarus, but not to hunt him?"

"Son of the sea god," Hephaestus responded gruffly. "It was wrong for me to vote for him to go to Tartarus. I thought that he actually killed his brother. Now, I know it's wrong. Fine lad he is."

The god of the forges shot Athena a look. She ignored it, but she couldn't ignore her heart beat up and down heavily.

"Athena, I thought you were a good sister," Hephaestus continued. "Now, I'm not so sure anymore."

The god flashed away, leaving all of the other Olympians stunned. Zeus clenched his fists and he banged his lightning bolt on the ruined ground, making a loud noise and being overdramatic as always. He stared at his 'god buddies' in the eye, making references to threats.

"Hera dear," Zeus continued, looking at his wife he had cheated on countless times. "I thought you disliked Perseus?"

"Sure I do," Hera responded, her head up straight. Her words were clear. "But Zeus 'dear,' putting him in Tartarus is one thing. Falsely accused. Tortured. Abused. Then hunted? Just to be put back in Tartarus of where he was falsely accused of? I don't think so."

The goddess of marriage too flashed away in a white light. Only Demeter and Poseidon were left. But then, even the god of the seas shook his head.

"You know my answer 'brother.'" Poseidon spat, leaving Olympus with a sea aroma.

"All for the cereal Zeus," Demeter said randomly. She sighed. "What I did was wrong. I just hope that all of you can eat cereal and come to your senses that what you all are doing is going to be very wrong as well."

A shake of the goddess' head and she left, replacing the aroma of the sea with cereal. Ares banged his large fists on his throne, roaring something about 'being unfair.' The god of wine was sitting on his throne, his elbow propped up under his head with some cushions underneath. Snoring could be heard as a sign of sleeping as no participation seemed to happen between him and the meeting.

The goddess of supposedly 'wisdom' placed her head in one head, sighing in exasperation as she looked at the council meeting in small disappointment, and slight anger. She heard all the things people said about her these days. 'Idiot.' 'Stupid.' 'Unwise.' All the things that went against her title. And just because she framed that son of Poseidon. She glowered at the floor, putting all her anger on something that did nothing wrong to her.

"Your jobs," Zeus announced as if nothing happened. Ideas flashed at him like light bulbs. "Athena, you can find out a plan to hunt him down strategically, Dionysus, you can transport Perseus to Tartarus. Moving on to Ares, your job is to help Athena, but you're doing the dirty job."

"And what about you?" Athena asked, looking up at her father.

"You'll see," Zeus responded swiftly. "Meeting dismissed."

When they flashed out, they failed to notice a petite figure hunched down around the hearth of Olympus that still seemed to be going. Hestia stared at the place that the gods were previously at, her eyes widening for a slight fraction.

"You made a big mistake Zeus," Hestia whispered to no one in particular. She shook her head, letting out a small breath of fire as she sighed. "And thus, your mistake..."

The flames in the heart lowered as Hestia bowed her head; breathing out a small sigh as she finally proceeded to teleport away like many other Olympians had done that day.

-"...will cause many people to hate you."

**In the Jackson's apartment: **

Frustration tweaked his brain, making him yell. Part pain and mostly because it happened to be what Kronos told him. Memories hurt. Reliving them one by one cause pain. Percy held his head in his hands, all the time whispering and chanting two repeated words: 'shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up.'

_Can't stand the truth in your bruised-scarred-memoried brain? Get used to it. You'll be living with it for the rest of your life outside Tartarus. Come back, and you'll get rid of it.__  
_  
"I won't go back there," Percy muttered, barely audible.

_Soothing words? I don't think so. Try and soothe this. __B-ba-bac-back t-o T-ta-tar-tart-tarta-tartar-tartaru-tartarus!-!-!-!-!-!__  
_  
"Percy?" Sally asked worriedly. She placed her hand on Percy's forehead as if he had a fever. "Are you feeling alright?"

No I'm not, Percy wanted to say. His mouth betrayed him otherwise.

"I'm fine," tumbled out of his mouth smoothly. Since when did he become a professional liar?

_Liar, liar, lie, lie, to your mother?__  
_  
Ignorance was supposed to be bliss. That was what Percy thought as he ignored the voice that was unknown and unidentified. He spoke to Nico about random things. The new video game that came out. The food. The weather. Anything but Tartarus or the voice.

"Thalia," Artemis' voice was crisp as the goddess beckoned the demigod over.

The demigod bit her lip to keep from saying curses. She didn't know why she was so nervous to see the goddess. Taking a deep breath, she sat down on the floor cross legged and looked up.

"I know something is bothering you," Artemis spoke, her eyes knowing. "What is it?"

"Am I still your lieutenant?" Thalia responded quickly, much to the goddess' surprise.

"I think you know the answer to that."

Like mother to daughter, Thalia's acting skills prevented her face to tell the truth. She nodded her head numbly, accepting the 'answer' without complaint. Inside, her mind was whirring as if she were a robot. She was trying to find the answer, but couldn't.

_Fickle, sickle, did you eat a pickle? Love's betrayal, daddy and girlfriend betrayed you. Didn't raise their hands. Kept it to themselves. Word of advice: go to Tartarus and this voice will end. Yup, yep, promise, River Styx, my word.__  
_  
Thunder rumbled, and Percy felt himself shake for about two seconds before it stopped. The voice took the oath, and it came real? He pretended to act casual as the occupants in the room looked confused. They seemed to be staring right at him, but as he stared off into space, their gazes seemed to land somewhere else.

"Water," Percy asked for weakly, his throat feeling dry.

"I'll get it!" Nico yelled, immediately running towards the direction of the kitchen. The son of Hades came back a few seconds later, a cup of water in his hands. "Here you go."

Smiles passed. Brotherly friendship and could be seen by the simple action. Percy grasped the cup in his hands tightly, his palms sweaty, as the cup almost fell from his hands.

All the occupants in the room felt like it was a TV reality show as they watched Percy do the simple task of raising the cup to his mouth and drinking from it. He felt slightly uncomfortable, but didn't say anything as he drank the water, feeling slightly reenergized as he felt the cool water trickle down his throat.

"Thanks," Percy said gratefully, swallowing the last of the clear liquid, and handing the cup back to Nico.

_Poison poison how'd you know s'not poison? Kill kill KILL!___

"You know what?" Thalia spoke up, stretching and yawning at the same time. She plopped down on a random chair lazily. "It's getting late. I'm going to bed."

"It's only ten!" Nico protested.

"Exactly," Thalia mumbled, already close to falling asleep.

"You sleep in chairs?!" Apollo asked, horrified. He snapped his fingers, and using his godly powers, the chairs and sofas instantly turned into five star beds. He collapsed in one, a lazy smile playing with his features. "That's much better."

The goddess of the hunt stared at her sibling, wondering if it were right to bunk at the Jackson's apartment. She looked around and saw that most of the occupants were already asleep- without even changing into their pyjamas.

The son of Poseidon thought he was the only person not asleep. To his surprise, he saw that the two Olympians were still in the apartment. He thought they had already left.

_Is it because you want to go back to Tartarus? How sweet of you...__  
_  
Percy closed his eyes shut, and tried to get some sleep. He needed it. After all, it was the first night out of Tartarus. He never felt luckier as he felt the cushions.  
_  
__Nightmares Perseus Jackson. You don't really want to relive the memories do you? Night night, try and sleep with all your might! You'll never be able to sleep in this STRANGE place. What about Tartarus? Good night...__  
_  
"Don't fall asleep," Percy chanted in a barely audible voice. He repeated it over and over, somehow believing the voice in his head. "Stay awake..."  
_  
__Morpheus is the good god? Fat chance. He's in Tartarus now, going to give you an audience with our dearest Kronos!_

And with the last words, Percy's eyes widened and closed one after another, as his audience with Kronos began.

"RIGHT!" The Titan roared angrily. "WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT LEAVING?!"

_Home, home, finally home! Oops. I swore on the River Styx didn't I? Your wish is my command. I leave now. See you in the morning...__  
_  
Tartarus. Percy glanced around and shivered. He could smell the damp but cool air across his face. It smelled like pollution. He coughed, bending his back to cough at the dirty grounds that was empty.

"Coughing?" Kronos asked with his composure slightly calmer. "I believe we have a remedy for coughing."

"its fine," Percy responded ungratefully.

"It's alright," the Titan lord answered, his teeth smiling at the demigod in front of him.

Punch to the nose. Face. Stomach. The demigod punching bag wasn't coughing anymore. More like wheezing and spitting out the blood. Percy lay sprawled in the floor at an awkward angle. He felt like one of those angels in a video game he had played before. A sticky substance was coming from his nose and he knew it was a blood nose instantly.

"Thanks to Morpheus over here," Kronos spoke, smiling sadistically all the time. "I finally get to see you once again. Happy?"

"No," Percy said, groaning as he tried to get up. He held his stomach, wanting it to end.

"That's..." Kronos waited for the right word to come to his head as his cronies started becoming playground bullies and punching the victim. "Upsetting."

The monsters guffawed. The dark pit that was once silent became almost like a dance party. Noises of all types rang out left and right. Laughter the most.

Of course, dreams never lasted that long. Morpheus looked at Kronos, pointing at his watch almost scoldingly. The Titan lord shook his head, wanting more time to have 'fun.'

"A few more minutes," Kronos said, but it was more of an order.

The god of dreams snapped his fingers, and suddenly, darkness turned to light. Percy opened his eyes to a dim spare lightning that had been setup. He nearly smiled, as he saw the familiar furniture of his apartment.

_Back to you Perseus. I betcha you're confused why Morpheus snapped his fingers and entered you to reality. Easy! Wait... Three... Two.. One. Puke... Vomit.. Throw up. Blood. Curtains open. Snare drums. Everybody laugh. It's Perseus Jackson people! The HERO OF OLYMPUS!__  
_  
Percy felt like he wanted to stab the voice in his mind with Riptide. He didn't know what the saying meant until he felt like he needed to puke. 'Puke... Vomit.. Throw up.' He actually felt like he needed to.

The bathroom was only a few meters away, but to Percy, it seemed miles. He rolled off the bed and landed on the floor painfully, he stifled a groan and bit the inside of his cheek as he tried to crawl to the door, which was open much to his delight.  
_  
__Pick up the damn pace! Pfft. Seaweed Brain. Emotional turmoil. Conflicts rise. Achievement won.__  
_  
Anger rose up inside of him, and he crawled faster like a soldier in the trenches, feeling the vomiting sensation rise up. Percy could feel his broken arm go awkwardly to the side each time, signalling that it could be broken. Pain and anguish signalled that he couldn't go any farther.

_Must must must little hero of Olympus!___

The voice cackles as Percy nearly passed out from exhaustion. He breathed in and out deeply as he saw two doors.  
_  
__Hallucination, the state of your nation, participation! Faster, faster, obey the master!__  
_  
A tub was right next to the door. He would never reach it in time. Percy saw two as he felt himself throw up all over the tub.

The last thing he saw was red, stampeding, and fading darkness.

_Up you go to the flashback zone, go go go, to your majestic throne. Obey, must, and never wake up...__  
_  
**A/N: Really sorry for the late update and my not so best chapter. It's kind of like a free verse chapter with the voice, and it will be explained in the upcoming chapters. Thanks for all the support!******

**Percy-God-Time-Hunt-Ice-Tides: No Pertemis.******

**Gold Testament: Thanks, but I get really busy sometimes, so I can't update all the time.******

**NSdaLine (Guest): Thanks, and I'm glad I made that decision as well. I don't really know what other authors with Tartarus stories think of that question, but just think that it's an AU story and that Kronos isn't particles of dust, but exists in Tartarus. ******

**Hyugagrl: What do you mean by that...?**


	14. Discovered

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians**

Chapter 13

"Oh my gods," Thalia whispered, crouching beside her (once again) unconscious cousin. "What the hell happened to you?"

It seemed that it wasn't actually normal 'throw up.' More like some sort of blood-fest, that looked like throw up than the actual thing itself. A tub that was filled with tons of red could be seen, and it actually looked like the rest of the occupants would want to vomit. Quite the irony.

"Shit Percy," Nico swore quietly, hoping Sally hadn't heard him.

Even if she did, she wouldn't have minded at that specific moment. It was like she turned off her hearing and the only thing she was focused on was her son- perfectly understandable.

Artemis watched mostly from the sidelines, managing to squish in the small group to look at the son of Poseidon. Her eyes didn't narrow, but her usual sharp and dangerous look in the silver orbs softened by a fraction. Her mind wandered, and she imagined what would happened if Percy would die. The funeral, the family, and the people. The grief. Depression. And herself as well. A blink, and the thought was attempted to be gone.

"Are you alright?" A voice told the goddess.

It was Apollo. The goddess of the hunt smiled wanly, but it didn't reach her eyes. It was most probably fake. The 'older' sibling god, hugged her, and she surprisingly hugged back.

"I thought you were getting misty eyed," Apollo said out loud in concern, because if there was one thing he knew, it was that his sister almost never cried.

All the sun god got for a reply was a little shake from the smaller form. Whether it was because of laughter or crying, he didn't know. Maybe it was both. Artemis herself didn't know what to think. She respected him- admired Percy as a man himself and that was all there was to it.

"Apollo," Thalia called, her electrifying eyes looking up at the god. "What's happening?"

The hug broke apart, and said person (or god) immediately strode forward to the tub. Out of habit, he placed two fingers on the teenager's neck to check the pulse. A sigh of relief, and an uncertain twitch of the lips.

"Artemis, I need you to see what this is," Apollo asked his sibling, gesturing towards the tub.

Without complaint, Artemis made a small container that probably looked stronger than it looked. She had on gloves that weren't there before, and closing her eyes for a second, she opened them and carefully scooped up the red substance that was laying there without moving.

"What is that?!" Nico couldn't help but whisper and yell at the same time.

"We're trying to figure it out," Artemis responded quickly, placing the substance in the container before closing it shut tightly.

"Unfortunately..." Apollo trailed off as if he was afraid of what he was going to say.

"Yes?" Sally finally got in the conversation, but her voice cracked slightly.

"Well he has to wake up first," Apollo answered after some time, biting his lip.

"And what's so bad about that?" Thalia asked curiously, not seeing any problem with the statement. "It's easy waking him up."

The sun god sighed deeply, putting his head in his lap. It seemed impossible with Percy. Just as they had saved his life, he seemed unconscious again, and in the next few hours, he would be getting a flashback.

"You don't get the point," Apollo said in frustration, wanting to vent his anger on something. "It's like something's triggered in his head. Maybe it's because of his time in Tartarus, and some sort of curse has been cast on him. I don't know, just wake him up, but do it gently."

The only mother in the small space that was the living room paled slightly, her face looking a few years older than she was. A sob racked her body, and she sat down on a chair as the salty water fell and splattered on the ground.

Most occupants looked at Artemis as if she would do something to comfort Sally. The goddess let out a small breath, and nodded.

"Sally," Artemis spoke softly, turning to the mother. "I swear on the River Styx, that your son Perseus Jackson will be healed and alright in the end."

Thunder rumbled, and Sally had a smile that wavered in and out. She nodded numbly, some tears still escaping out of her eyes. Thalia looked slightly shocked at the promise but recovered quickly enough to let a smile cover her face.

Nico wasn't one for mushy stuff. He crouched down next to his cousin, wondering what had happened to Percy. He tried hard to not let himself get emotional but it was hard. Seeing his older cousin like this, weak and gaunt. Blood bled profusely out of the open wounds that were slowly cracking open. It looked nasty, almost evil, as if the wound was saying 'I can never be healed, go away.' And maybe it couldn't.

Eventually, Thalia came to join her cousins, one unconscious, and the other alive and well. She stared at the son of Poseidon on the floor, a pool of blood surrounding him. Her mind cleared. Sadness was one thing. Anger was another. Her clear and sharp tone rang out in the apartment room.

"We should try putting dynamite in Tartarus," Thalia said solemnly.

"We don't have the dynamite-" Nico responded, but got interrupted.

"Apollo can supply the dynamite, Kronos should die, that sorry little bastard should go rot in Tartarus, all his limbs being sliced off, and his stupid head eaten by the hellhounds, and-"

"Thalia!"

"Then that Titan king can scream so loud that I can hear it, we'll be like the mafia, chopping off the fing-"

"THALIA!"

"Okay, fine, but tell the truth Ms. Jacks- Sally, wouldn't you be thinking the same?"

Sally looked at the ex-daughter of Zeus carefully. "Less harsh."

"See that's the problem with grownups," Nico whispered to Thalia. "Something bad happens, and even if it's truly bad, they'll still want the kids to think that it's alright and that they don't deserve to be punished. Absolute bullshit."

Thalia nodded, agreeing to the 'well said' statement, it was an opinion however, and Apollo frowned slightly. The goddess of the hunt stared at her (former?) lieutenant as if saying 'you know that I can think of way worse than you.'

Sally didn't hear, since she didn't have those 'enhanced hearing' that the demigods and gods had. She just shook her head as she marveled of their imagination. Her eyes wandered all over the space that they were in until they landed on a figure that looked to be waking up. A smile graced her features.

"Stop... Don't..." A hoarse voice spoke quietly.

All current activity that was happening stopped as if Kronos had stopped time. Heads turned like some celebrity was walking, and finally the reactions.

"Perce, why the hell is it always you?" Were the words that tumbled out of Thalia's mouth. "You're the one that the Fates love aren't you?"

"I'm sure the word you're looking for is 'hate,' I'm like their puppet," Percy replied, trying to sit up but failing dramatically.

The son of Hades noticed the failed movement and helped his cousin up. "Damn. You used to do sit-ups..."

Silence. Percy just smiled without the tips reaching his eyes. "I used to, maybe I'll try one today."

"No don't, you'll break your back," Apollo added in hurriedly, his blonde hair messed up from his hand always running though it. "And I don't think you'll want that."

"You've had enough injuries already," Artemis stated firmly. She saw Percy staring at her in a hint of surprise. "And yes, I will be staying here until my brother decides to leave."

"I'm leaving until he's healed," Apollo said in reply to his sibling's unasked question. "You should all get some sleep; two professionals are going to work on our patient."

"I'm very honored," the son of Poseidon responded sarcastically, as he supported himself on a chair.

A flicker of a rainbow-water message appeared above on the ceiling. The lighting of it all was dim, so none of the occupants could see it. A few faces appeared on the IM out of curiosity and either anger or hatred. Sally found herself looking up at the face of Zeus, the king of the gods.

_The gods are here now, they look at your face, thinking you are just a waste of space, now that their in the ceiling, learn to appreciate your home, because the voice you're hearing is like an atomic bomb. They just want you to suffer, why can't you see that Perseus?__  
_  
"Because I don't want to," Percy replied softly through gritted teeth.

The others were freaking out once Sally nearly jumped up in the air. She pointed towards the ceiling, and the occupants could see the image that was now gone.

_Well now they know your secret that you've been hiding for how many hours...? It was only yesterday when you were at home, nicely getting whipped for what you said. Beautiful and insane...__  
_  
"Who are you?" It had to be the first time Percy asked that question.

_Why I'm surprised you haven't figured it out before Seaweed Brain. A flinch at the reminder. You know, to escape pain, usually for a regular mortal, there are four options._ _One is to take drugs, get addicted. The second way is to drink everyday in the pub to forget. The third way is to kill yourself, and the fourth can be to cut yourself. You, as a demigod, can have a fifth option. GO TO TARTARUS!__  
_  
It was sadly the truth. Percy realized the fact easily. He swallowed and licked his dry lips nervously. "You still haven't told me who you are."  
_  
__You don't get it do you? I'm the insane part of you. The 'conscious' everyone has. That's me. I was created in Tartarus by you. I'm the only one you have left now. I won't betray you. Look around you. Sally? She sees the best in everyone; she might even learn to forgive Poseidon. Artemis? The maiden goddess that hates males could turn you into a jackalope, and EVERYONE will laugh. Apollo? The healer can also be a destroyer don't you know? And then there are your dearest two cousins.__  
_  
"Shut up, and don't tell me," Percy told the voice, feeling his stomach do handstands.  
_  
__They might betray you. It could be the Fates' plan all along. Betrayer's betrayal lost in the betrayer world of betrayal. Everyone that you hold in your fatal flaw heart will betray you eventually. Just like Annabeth did, and exactly how your daddy dearest did as well. Thalia and Nico sitting in your apartment, K-I-L-L-I-N-G, first target is Sally, then comes you, and then comes themselves in their twisted marriage!__  
_  
"Technically I'm a bastard now," Thalia spoke, not even ashamed to admit it.

"Good for you," Nico responded absentmindedly, fiddling with something in his hands.

_See? You're too naive Seaweed Brain. Drop the niceness you have in yourself. Become fiercer. You're an idiot if you think that they'll trust you. They think you're insane. Look at Sally's face right now, just look in her eyes and tell me what you see.__  
_  
"Call me Seaweed Brain again, and I'll kill you."

_Kill yourself is option number three. What I've been telling you is to go to option number five. You just won't listen. Oh well, she's looking at you now.__  
_  
The son of Poseidon stared at his mother's eyes. They looked haunted and pale, but it still had the same light from a few years ago.

_She prefers Paul over you. Without you, she could actually have a normal life. That's all she wanted. You just ruin things as always. She didn't hug you or anything, did she? Oh look, she's standing up, walking in your direction and... She's going to her bedroom. To sleep I suppose. Goodnight Sally.__  
_  
"Night Percy," Sally told her son, as she hugged him tightly, careful not to hurt him. "I love you."

"... I love you too mom."

Sally must have noticed the hesitant tone, because she frowned slightly, her expression bemused. She didn't press the matter further, and gave a small smile, releasing the hug and going to her bedroom.

_Even your mother is beginning to doubt you. I thought she would sick by you till the end, and then betray you, but looks like I'm wrong. Maybe she'll be the first. You should do option five. Or two, just drink alcohol until you pass out. Very effective, but five is the best. You don't believe me? Go there yourself, maybe you'll find the news that no one told you yet...__  
_  
**A/N: I was supposed to do 3,000 words, but I didn't have the inspiration. Sorry for the late update, I was really busy. I hope you all enjoyed the filler chapter, next one will probably be more exciting. Thanks for all the support!**

**Percy-God-Time (Guest): This isn't really a romance story, so I really don't know.**

**Dancing With The Clouds: Thanks!**

**mosgem: Thanks, and I suppose the wait isn't really worth it this time.**

**TheDeadOne28: It was an illusion and a dream.**


	15. Dead or Alive?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians  
**  
Chapter 14

Percy groaned, holding his head lightly, careful not to touch any of his head bruises which had been punched so many times he couldn't even count.

"You okay?" Artemis asked him, looking concerned, but at the same time having no idea how to speak to a male that she respected.

_Male-hater.  
_  
"Just a headache that's all," Percy replied, lying through his already gritted teeth.

And that was exactly why Artemis disliked males. Well part of the reason anyways. They lied too much. _Although the same could be said for everyone,_ she mused. Nodding rather stiffly, she turned around, only to be greeted by her cheerful brother.

"Artemis," Apollo nodded, a breezy smile playing with his features. "Go along and play now, I need to heal our guest-"

Both the goddess and the demigod knew the joke at the same time.

"I'm not a child," Artemis snapped, but when her brother looked at her, she felt herself do a mental facepalm.

"Technically, you're in child form..." Apollo pointed out oh so wisely.

"So you managed to outsmart your older sister," Percy responded to the entire conversation. "But 'technically' you are a guest in my house. Not the other way around."

And so a demigod managed to outsmart a god.

Apollo's cheerful face turned into an expression of glumness, but it seemed fake. A small smile couldn't help but return to his face. "Well then, that was getting awkward..."

And while the sun god babbled endlessly, about how he needed to heal Percy, the demigod couldn't help but look downcast. Was he really that mentally and physically disabled? He snorted gently, feeling a pair of shining silver eyes on him. He met them with his own dark sea green ones, and the goddess glanced away, troubled by something.

"So you can go now," Apollo finally finished his incredibly long statement of why he had to heal the demigod, not knowing that Percy wasn't listening. He made a gesture to his sibling, basically shooing her away. "I have to heal-"

"Perseus," Artemis cut her sibling off, while the demigod grimaced at his full name. "We get it."

And with those four words, the goddess walked away to the smiling god that was her 'idiot sibling.' Apollo was still grinning idiotically when he turned around to face Percy...

... Only to find him gone. The smile slid off the sun god's face, as he looked around left and right.

"Percy?!" Apollo called out loudly.

Surprisingly, the two cousins were already sleeping on the couch. Thalia was lightly snoring, her right hand lazily hanging loose on the edge of the comfy chair, her left hand lying on her stomach as if she had died. The son of Hades wasn't even considered to be 'sleeping.' His eyes were closed, yet Percy could see the slight flickering of the eyelids opened and shut, signaling that he was still awake. For what reason, the son of Poseidon couldn't figure out.

"Right here," Percy called back, slouching back on a recliner lazily, his scarred back feeling comfortable in his old and mostly torn armchair.

"You shouldn't be moving too much," Apollo muttered under his breath, looking at the son of Poseidon who was smiling normally.

The smile faded a little, seemingly fake as Percy slouched back even further in the chair, not caring if he looked pathetic. He was tired of it all.

"I... Am going to bed," Percy announced suddenly, feeling tiredness wash over him. A see-through mask could be seen as his face took over a rather fake smile that didn't even reach up to his eyelids.

_Clown clown, why don't you frown? Smiling too much will let the others down.  
_  
The god could clearly see something was wrong. _Did he go insane?_ Apollo thought, feeling guilty as he did nothing to help except nod and go away. Personally, he didn't know what to feel. He felt like he was watched but didn't press the matter, knowing it was Percy to probably check that he was gone.

He froze for a few seconds, his eyes not even getting watery as he didn't or couldn't even blink. His breathing stopped for a few seconds, estimated about fifteen seconds. It was almost as if he was frozen in time. Even his actions and hands weren't moving.

Everything was completely still. And yet, Percy's mind went on overdrive, wondering what the Hades was happening. He could still see everything, and mentally, his eyes seemed as if they were burning and watering endlessly. His lung capacity without air could only go for so far. He needed air. He needed to blink. He needed to move.

And then it was gone. Just like that. Percy took short ragged breaths of air, and blinked almost endlessly, taking in his surroundings with bits of water in his eyes from the 'no blinking when he was frozen' time. Deep long gasps and his arms moved to his sides, resting against the arm part of the armchair, sighing once more before his breathing returned to 'normal.'

_A curse. It'll be gone when you burst. You know what? Forget the rhyming thing. It's Kronos' curse. You think he'll let you go just like that?  
_  
The son of Poseidon could hear chuckles in his mind, going round and round his mind like a fly that could actually laugh.  
_  
You must be a Seaweed Brain to actually think that. A curse. The curse of the time lord himself. It's a great honor, as your 'friend' Connor, once said; you were misled, by a mistake that could have made you dead. That was the most horribly terrifying in the most horror filled way possible rhyme in the world who won't accept my horror-filled horrible rhyme of all in the earth.  
_  
"What's the curse?" Percy asked quietly, finally coming to terms with his insanity filled mind.

_The curse of Kronos. He gave it to you when you climbed up, up, up and above to Tartarus.  
_  
"Tartarus is down," Percy pointed out to himself, still speaking in barely a whisper.

_Not to me, which is you, it isn't. Elysium is where the supposed 'Tartarus' is. Tartarus is where 'Elysium' is. The heroes there are too naive to think that they can have a happy ever after. In my dictionary, there is no happily ever after. Just some happy thoughts that are filled with false hope._

"What's the curse?" Percy asked again, this time more forcefully, while still keeping his voice quiet. "What does it do?"

Well, well, well. So far, everyone comes to term with their own insanity. You are one of the quickest though. Whether I am a blessing or a curse is up to you though. It has always been up to you...

"Y-" Percy began, but got interrupted when he didn't even finish pronouncing his first word. Just the first letter.  
_  
Very well. No need to complete your sentence... Or word. The curse is that you freeze for some time, your outside view not moving at all. No blinking, no breathing, no moving. Your inside can 'move' though. So your eyes will not water when you don't blink, but it will hurt you inside. Your breathing will stop, but inside, you cannot breath because you're frozen, but you will feel like you're running out of air soon enough. I couldn't think of a better punishment myself._

The son of Poseidon pondered what 'he' or his conscious talked about. It didn't make any sense as far as he was concerned. "And I suppose Kronos invented you too?"

The conscious has emotions you know. I'm hurt, you're hurt.

"I'm already hurt."  
_  
I'm hurt, you're even more hurt. Thanks for stating that out, I couldn't figure that one out myself. I'm not made by Kronos. I'm made by you. I'll be silent for you to realize this realization that I have made you realize.  
_  
And the conscious did keep its word. Percy was silent as well, feeling and looking downcast and quite un-cheerful if specific. He didn't even want to think of that possibility. He didn't even try to consider why he would invent such an atrocious conscious in his mind that some people said was filled with all kinds of stupid or 'seaweed and kelp' stuff.

_If they heard my conscious, they would think twice, _Percy thought, and perhaps, letting the possibility sink in. He sighed, letting a sting hurt him as he moved his arm to rub his forehead. Whether it was a facepalm or tiredness, even he didn't know.

The voice didn't even speak. It kept silent for once, knowing the demigod needed some time. Lots of time to be particular in fact.

"Why would I need you?" Percy finally broke the silence that wavered in the air without being seen.

Cue chuckling from the unseen conscious. _You do, because you need help. You're not screwed in the head though, don't worry.  
_  
"You're the one screwing up my head," Percy muttered, feeling exhausted. "So if you would give me a break that would be awesome for me. You can find more smart things to say that way."

_I feel like I've been sucker punched. Quite the dramatics. Or should I say, quit the dramatics. Being like Zeus isn't you. I know that you know, I know you won't go to sleep. You'll stay awake. Reminisce. Think. Cry. Whatever you're going to do. How kind of you to lie Perseus Jackson.  
_  
Said person gritted his teeth, however much the truth was spoken. His lips were pursed as he sighed while closing his eyes-

-only to be met with two orbs of golden eyeballs. Chuckles of evil laughter echoed around the dark space that only one person could pull off. A sharp edged weapon glinted in the dark, illuminating the still 'unknown' figure to Percy. The Titan lord could only smile gruesomely, with his scythe in his right hand, ready for another war if possible.

Sea green eyes that turned dark were ominous as he stared at his most number one 'hated by almost everyone' enemy. His fingertips grabbed down to his jean pocket to grab Riptide. He slowly took off the cap, noting the way Kronos' eyes glinted maliciously in the darkness.

The familiar bronze sword that couldn't harm mortals appeared. It didn't glint of the light of the orbs, which Percy had come to fact that they might have been hidden lightbulbs.

"You should be grateful," Kronos finally spoke, his words sounding arrogant. "I healed you for the dream. Back in your 'home,' they are still there, don't worry."

"Thank ye for thine kindness lord," Percy retorted with distaste, obvious sarcasm being heard all the way.

"I am glad you feel that way," Kronos replied instantly, ignoring the sarcasm.

Fireworks exploded in the air, and finally, light overpowered the darkness as it took over. Percy could see the fireworks all have one thing in common. They seemed to be 'cheering' for Kronos.

'GO KRONOS!' Was one of the main ones. Along with ''You suck Jackson... WHOO! KRONOS FOR THE WIN!' and 'KICK HIS SORRY ARSE!' Percy blinked slightly at that one, wondering who made one of the mainstream fireworks sound British.

He figured out that he was in an arena as well. Stage lights shone around and Kronos' defeated army were all cheering for the Titan lord. Telekhines were snorting around, while dracaenas were smiling, their faces varying between normal and not so normal. Insane looks were on their faces.

A rectangular cardboard object with the words 'ROUND 1' were stuck in-between the Minotaur's two horns, making him roar and charge forwards, as the noise dimmed.

"Go!" A monster snorted loudly.

The Titan lord roared and its loudness could compete with the Minotaur's as he charged forward recklessly, but in a quick manner. The scythe was curved and hit forwards, but Percy managed to dodge the attack, while moving backwards.

"You can't run forever," Kronos taunted, striking again, while Percy managed to roll to the left.

On the outside, it looked like Percy was trying to run away, but in reality, he wasn't. He was trying to make a plan to defeat Kronos.

"Kronos! Kronos! Kronos!" The army of monsters cheered loudly.

The son of Poseidon grimaced, feeling grim as he looked at a battle without hope.

"You want to play coward?!" Kronos finally shouted, stopping his useless attacks against the 'coward.' He took a deep breath, before continuing. "Launch the rockets!"

And finally, a chance. ADHD was awesome at times like these. Percy covered up the slight grin that was forming, knowing it could be life or death situation for him, but wasn't it always?

It seemed that Kronos had more supplies than the demigod had thought. It wasn't exactly a 'rocket' or a 'missile.' It could be a combination of both, but that wasn't exactly a problem to the demigod.

Time slowed down, none of it due to the fact that Kronos had power over time. The ADHD kicked in, as Percy ran up to the strange combination of 'missile rockets' at full speed.

"Are you hoping for a death wish?" Kronos asked, sounding amused.

The demigod son of Poseidon didn't respond, but focused on his 'death wish' instead. And just when the 'missile rockets' were about a few inches away from him, he jumped forwards...

... And landed on one of the 'missile rockets' in style. He finally let a bitter smile cross his face, before he jumped on another one of the rockets that was higher than the other one.

The rockets got 'confused.' They whizzed around like buzzing bees, until Percy jumped off, doing a nicely done skill roll on the ground, and landing right beside Kronos, with a sarcastic and sunny grin on his face. He even waved his left hand.

"These injuries will affect you when you wake up," Kronos warned, finally getting the image as the rockets came closer and closer, trying to move away from the approaching rockets. "That is, if you wake up at all."

"At least you'll be 'dead' as well," Percy responded, his posture clam, but he was shaking on the inside as he followed the Titan around. "Two heads are better than one."

During Kronos' rage, the Titan didn't see the demigod back away from him until the end. The rockets came at full speed, but for once, the immortal made a 'smart' decision on his part. He quickly grabbed Percy's shirt collar and pulled the son of Poseidon towards him, making the statement 'two heads are better than one' true.

No words were exchanged as Percy's eyes widened, as he struggled the Titan's strong hold.

"Stop the rockets!" Kronos ordered loudly, while the monsters were uselessly galloping or charging around, doing nothing to help their master who was in serious trouble.

The Minotaur destroyed the 'control rocket' remote altogether. He stomped on it accidentally, during all the chaos that ensued.

The explosion took place a few seconds afterwards, exploding right in Kronos' face. Percy managed to get away at the last second, trying to run away, but still managing to get hurled at the barbed wire fence that surrounded the arena.

The force of the blast made the hurl fierce and rough, and the demigod fell unconscious the instant he hit the fence, while his skin was charred, with bruises and scars he had just received from the fence. Blood trickled down from his cheek that received the hit from the fence.

The army of monsters charged together at the barbed wire, trying to break it down to get to their master. None of them cared about the sixteen year old boy with closed eyes and blood trickling down his face rapidly.

**With Annabeth:  
**  
The daughter of Athena woke up with a small gasp, her blonde hair knotted and all over her face. She was currently in her cabin, and she stood up ever so quietly, feeling shock go through her as she stumbled towards the Big House as quickly as she could with tiredness.

Her grey eyes didn't seem that alert, but she tried to focus on the Big House entrance that she was approaching. Dizziness washed over her as she took each step quickly. Walking immediately in the morning as soon as woken up can do that. She nearly slapped herself for feeling that way; she should've been used to it by now.

"Chiron!" Annabeth called out loudly, her hands curled up into a fist as she pounded on the door. She waited impatiently, tucking a blonde curl behind her ear wildly, as said centaur finally answered the door. "I had a dream about Percy. I don't know whether he's alive or dead."

The old centaur looked solemn. "We need to contact the Olympians. Meanwhile you can tell me what the dream was about."

The demigod and centaur nearly ran inside, (in Chiron's case, galloped,) while Annabeth was fishing out a drachma out of her pocket, holding the golden coin in her hand. She was explaining her dream vividly as the centaur created a rainbow with a spray nozzle.

"Oh Iris, goddess of the rainbow, please show me the Olympians on Olympus."

The 'screen' changed image, until it led to Zeus. He noticed the IM immediately, frowning when he saw Chiron and Annabeth.

"Lord Zeus, will you please call the entire Olympians for a meeting, this matter is urgent," Chiron spoke respectfully.

"Is it really that important to call a meeting?" Zeus asked haughtily.

The centaur nodded, while the king of the gods only sighed as he nodded. "Very well then."

One stroke of lightning, before two more followed after. The demigod and the centaur shut their eyes as ten flashes of light appeared.

"You may open your eyes now," Zeus ordered.

They did. Annabeth wasted no time. "I will explain my dream, but I need to ask one important thing." Her eyes looked directly at Hades. "Is Percy alive?"

The god of the dead studied the demigod in the image in front of him, before searching all the 'recently added' in the Underworld list. He shook his head, but then he did a manual search. "He is alive."

Annabeth couldn't help but let the frown on her face disappear.

"But barely," Hades continued, his black soulless eyes turning even darker. "And I suppose you want to tell us why you ask that question?"

"I had a dream..."

**A/N: Extremely sorry for the late update, but I hope the sort of long length made up for it. And to make it clear: My updating will be usually below three weeks, exactly three weeks, or a bit over three weeks. No my pace will not 'pick up,' because I have other stories to work on, and have an actual life, that can have problems which will not help me 'pick up the pace.' Thanks for all the support!**

stikenotes: Thanks, and I'll try keeping the swearing to the minimum even though this is rated 'very strong T' so swearing will probably be expected. I appreciate all the fans, but I write out of passion, so even if I get zero fans, I'll still write.

Annabeth luvs Percy: He's not going to, don't worry.

Eccentrica: I'll take that on the positive side, but this is a slow-paced story. I'm not going to make this like the other Tartarus stories; not because I want to make this unique (which is part of the reason) but also, because it wouldn't exactly "fit" with the chapters that are upcoming. Maybe in the future, on the twentieth chapter, yes, it might happen, but for now, I can't do that, and no, I can't 'pick up the pace' either.


	16. Chances

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or the Matrix**

Chapter 15

"BULL-" Ares roared, but was cut off by a very stern look from Hera. He still glared at Annabeth ferociously. "She's lying!"

"You're not the god of truth Ares," Poseidon snapped, hope filling up in his heart. "Apollo is."

"You believe her?!" Ares shouted, sounding like the Minotaur. He pointed an accusing finger towards Annabeth, who couldn't help but shrink back in fear. "He's injured. He's a boy, he cannot have defeated Kronos twice! She's lying obviously!"

Athena rubbed her forehead, wondering whether or not she should believe her daughter. "Where's Apollo when we need actually him?"

"SILENCE!" Zeus thundered, banging his lightning bolt on the ground due to the massive headache that seemed to be forming out of all the noise.

It was almost like a Kodak moment. The Olympians stopped what they were doing immediately as thunder rumbled outside. Zeus was standing up in front of his hastily made together throne he had conjured up from the ground. His face had only purely a fit of anger. Banging his lightning bolt on the ground one last time to get everyone's attention, he finally continued.

"We will have a council vote," Zeus said fairly. "No objections."

Not one person in the room spoke a single word. It was fair after all.

"Alright, who believes that Perseus has defeated Kronos. In other words, who believes the daughter of Athena?" Zeus asked, feeling satisfied at the silence.

"Hades, Artemis and Apollo aren't present," a quiet voice spoke up.

"Yes well," Zeus responded impatiently to his sister, Hestia. "Artemis and Apollo are away, their votes don't mean anything. Someone go get Hades."

"I'll go," Hermes volunteered before flashing out.

The wait for the two Olympians was a silent one. Annabeth couldn't help but wonder why Iris didn't cut off the connection yet, but figured out later that maybe it was because she was IMing the gods. She bowed down her head slightly, as if she was respecting the dead, but it was too not show her face in front of the gods.

"What's taking him so long?" Hephaestus grumbled, tinkering something, with a hammer on one hand, and metal on the other. "I need to go back to my workshop."

"Patience," was all Hera replied with, although she looked aggravated as well. "They'll come back eventually."

"Eventually," Dionysus mimicked, snickering, and looking extremely bored.

The queen of the gods shot her stepson a nasty look.

Two flashes of bright light shone on the walls of Olympus. Hades and Hermes stood there with grim expressions on their faces, not looking forward to what was going to happen.

"Now that Hades has joined us, the vote will begin," Zeus cleared his throat, speaking. He knew that Hermes had informed Hades of what had happened. "Who believes Annabeth's dream, which is basically Percy killing Kronos?"

Only a few hands rose. Hermes, Hades, Aphrodite, and Hestia raised their hands supportively. Same as before. No one joined in, and no one went out. The goddess of the hearth stared at the sea throne, where Poseidon was currently seated at, and she couldn't help but feel bitter.

"Everyone that doesn't believe Annabeth?" Zeus spoke again.

More hands were in the air this time. Ares, Hera, Dionysus, and Athena (who had figured what her daughter had been saying must have been nonsense.)

"It's a tie," Hermes said, stating the obvious. He grinned.

"Some people did not vote," Athena added in hurriedly.

"Demeter, Poseidon, Hepaestus, and I haven't," Zeus responded edgily. "Everyone must vote."

Another voice joined in. "Not everyone, there's always the option of neutrality." It was Aphrodite.

"And since when did you have a brain?" Ares sneered.

"You get a lot of pickup phrases when there are tons of people fighting over you," Aphrodite pointed out, her lipstick stained lips pulling up in a tight smile.

"Now now everyone," Hermes spoke, imitating Athena'a voice and actions. "Let's be quiet so we can listen to our dearest father speak!"

"Why you li-" Athena shouted, lunging for Hermes, but was cut off.

"EVERYONE SHUT UP AND LISTEN!" Zeus roared angrily. Lightning struck outside. One, two, three times.

Silence fell nearly immediately. Satisfied, the king of the gods spoke again.

"Who, in Aphrodite's words, believes they are 'neutral' to this subject," Zeus asked, making air quotes.

The remaining three hands rose up. Poseidon, Hephaestus, and Demeter finally allowed themselves to vote without being yelled at. The ones that believed Annabeth felt hope for the first time since they voted. Aphrodite allowed herself to apply another layer of blush, but inside, she was worrying slightly.

"It's still a tie," Athena pointed out.

"We can see that Athena," Poseidon snapped, feeling annoyed.

Zeus managed to prevent another fight that was likely going to happen. "So it is a tie," he started. But before anyone could start cheering or booing, he smiled like a demon had possessed him. "I never voted."

And just like that, hope was crushed.

"How can the boy defeat Kronos while he's severely injured? How can he jump on those rocket type things?" Zeus fired off questions by question. "This isn't the Matrix, he doesn't heal right away, and he's injured! It cannot be true. I hereby announce that the daughter of Athena is lying!"

"I want to change-" Poseidon said immediately after.

"You cannot change votes Poseidon," Athena spoke, a small smirk forming on her lips that Hermes wanted to smash with whatever weapon he had on hand.

"You!" A loud and acid voice yelled out. Aphrodite glared at the goddess of 'wisdom' so hard, her eyes literally flashed from a light blue to complete black and later blood red. "Shut up! You are the most annoying, stupid, unwise, moron I have ever met! And now you're whining and being so smug about you winning vote! Just because you're happy that Percy hasn't defeated Kronos, or is going to be hunted, doesn't mean everyone else is. Why. Don't. You. Just. DIE?!"

"Burn baby burn!" Ares cheered loudly, chuckling, but Aphrodite and Athena didn't even look at him.

The goddess that had owls at her side seethed in anger. Her lips were pressed tightly together, and her grey eyes flashed a dangerous grey. She changed into full battle armor, as her two hands were occupied with her spear and her shield.

Instead of changing into battle gear, Aphrodite pressed an SOS button to call her son, Eros. She simply smiled breathtakingly as a small flash of light appeared, shimmering into a small figure with bow and arrows.

"How lovely for you to join us," Aphrodite gushed, but she pointed towards Athena, who was currently waiting, but on the inside, she was thinking of a battle strategy.

Athena smirked, knowing the battle had been won for her. "Is this all you have Aphrodite? A god with wings and diapers, your son Eros?"

"You, of all people should know that love is a lethal weapon Athena. Love can make people die or commit suicide. Be happy. Something you don't know about," Aphrodite retorted in fury.

"Never knew you had a brain," the goddess of strategies quipped.

And that was when Eros shot his first arrow.

In the Jackson's residence:

Artemis wasn't sleeping well. She was usually used to sleeping in two things: an uncomfortable bed in a tent near the woods, or in her bed up in Olympus. A couch wasn't one of those things. Tossing and turning was getting annoying.

Eventually, she sighed, sitting up and groaning a little bit due to the fact that ichor rushed to her head, giving her a small headache. She yawned tiredly,

"No," a very faint voice murmured.

She recognized the voice almost immediately. But then again, everyone in the apartment room could. It was one filled with pain and the fact that she could see him made it even easier to identify.

That wasn't exactly what caught her attention. She knew that people talked in their sleep, and she was aware that Percy did. It was the fact that his breaths were short and ragged as if he was in a fight.

"Apollo!" Artemis called out from where she was standing, which wasn't very far from her sibling that was currently fixing himself a snack from the kitchen.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping by now lil sis?" Apollo responded, coming out the kitchen with some chips on a plate that was in his hands. "What's wrong-"

The god's words got caught up in his throat as he stared at the sleeping figure below him. The glass plate he was holding fell on the ground and bits and pieces fell everywhere.

The two cousins woke up. Thalia got up from the couch groggily, but instantly had her spear out. She pushed Nico out of the couch deliberately, before rushing over towards the scenario.

"What happened?" Thalia asked hoarsely, due to just waking up.

The son of Hades appeared at the wrong timing. He could sense someone's life string fading away slowly. Very slowly. He usually felt it every second, but he knew when someone in his family, or a very close friend was about to die. And he hated.

"He's dying it's he?" Nico asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

The sun god leaned forward and pressed one finger onto Percy's pulse. A sorrowful look was on his face. A small head nod.

"No," Thalia whispered. "He can't be." Her expression turned desperate. "You can still save him!"

It was naive hope. Apollo looked like he was about to start a sobbing fest. All of them did, except for Artemis who did a good job of holding her emotions in.

"Someone go get Sally," Apollo spoke, feeling pathetic.

A short gasp emerged from Percy. All the occupants stared down, hoping for maybe an alive signal. Nothing.

Blood trickled down his mouth, and burn marks appeared on his back and face. His breathing got quieter, and his eyes that had been flickering under his eyelids started closing deeper.

_This is it,_ Nico thought hopelessly. _The end of my cousin who doesn't deserve death._

She started to punch the god in the stomach, and eventually his face, giving him a bloody nose. Little teardrops coming down slowly, she finally broke, stumbling as she lost her footing, all the while thinking of her dead cousin. "You didn't even try!" The ex-daughter of Zeus screamed.

"He was already dying," Apollo explained, letting the ichor fall. "I couldn't do anything."

"You could have," Nico snarled. "You could have tried. You never did. Now you're all sad. Funny isn't it?"

The sun god didn't like being taken as a sucker. "I don't see you doing anything."

"You're a god! One that happens to be the one with the healing powers!" Nico snapped, stubbornly trying not to let any tears fall like his cousin already did. His voice lowered down, cracking slightly. "You could've saved him."

"And yet," Thalia added, pausing for a while to catch her breath. She tried to hold in her tears to finish her sentences. It was the first time Artemis had seen her lieutenant so teary-eyed. "We all watched him die."

"He's not dead," a sharp voice spoke. Artemis was standing in the same spot she always was, except she was checking his pulse. "Any other human feeling his pulse would think that he's dead, but he's not. It's still there." She stared at Apollo straight in the eyes. "Now's your chance."

The sun god's eyes lit up slightly, and Thalia jumped on her feet, looking hopeful. She nearly stumbled, but caught herself just in time. A worried smile crossed her face.

"I need some space and my lil sis," Apollo spoke hurriedly, grabbing Artemis by the arm.

The son of Hades felt himself being grabbed by the arm as well. He turned around and saw Thalia staring at him. Remembering Apollo's words, he shrugged off the hand rather roughly and followed his cousin to the kitchen to talk.

"You think we should wake up Sally?" Nico whispered, staring at a hidden jar of blue cookies he had seen on top of a shelf and remembering Percy's mother.

"I don't think she would want to see Percy like this," Thalia answered quietly.

Nico fidgeted with his skull ring on his finger. "Isn't that being a little... Selfish?"

"Selfish?" Thalia questioned, a little louder this time. So far, she had her back turned to Nico, but now, she spun around. Her electrical blue eyes looked angry. "You be the daddy. Someone else is mommy. See your son nearly dead, while a god is trying to heal him with the best of his abilities. You have no idea if your son will live or die. What will you pick, to see him or not to see him?"

"I would want to see him," Nico pointed out softly, even though not enjoying the fact that she was telling him something, but glad that the old Thalia was back in a way.

She groaned in frustration. "That's not the point!"

"Then what is?!" Nico finally exploded.

Thalia wasn't surprised by the unexpected outburst. "The fact that Sally probably wouldn't want to see him! It isn't selfish Nico, it's called 'not wanting her to feel anymore stress!' How difficult is that to decipher?!"

"What stress?" A new voice joined in.

Sally Jackson was leaning on one of the shelves, and she looked as if she had been crying. She was trying to stay strong, but it seemed to be that she was failing.

Both cousins looked slightly guilty, although Nico pointed towards Thalia's direction as if to say 'ask her, she started it.' She growled slightly, pushing him back.

"It's nothing," Thalia eventually said carefully, trying not to make her voice sound too guilty. "Everything's fine."

**A/N: Extremely sorry for the short chapter, and the late update with a slight cliffhanger. Although they do say quality not quantity. I will say this though, Percy's not dead. Thanks for the 500 reviews and all the other reviews!**

**Shadow Omega (Guest): Thanks, but I actually got the inspiration from 'From the Brink' which is where Percy goes to Tartarus also. I don't usually write mainstream stories, and try to make my stories unique, so even if there are other stories like this, I'll still be trying to make this unique.**

**MarvelAsh: Maybe, maybe not, you'll have to wait and see.**

**Guest: Yeah, I get a lot of romance requests. That's not such a bad idea, but I don't exactly do OC's (if that's what you meant) and I'm not exactly focusing on romance.**

**hermes10: Thanks for the 500th review!**


	17. Casualty or Casualties?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians******

**A/N: Anything in italics is either thoughts or flashbacks.******

Chapter 16

A dark mood settled upon the cousins once Sally had left. Thalia could only stare at the mortal's retreating figure guilty, feeling a cold fist close around her heart as she glanced down at the ground. _Lies _rang out in her mind, but she had a feeling it wasn't the lying part that worried her.

Percy. That was what it was. She knew he might not make it, and it took all her willpower not to run over back to the living room and scream at him to wake up. Patience and waiting were two things that Thalia Grace couldn't do.

"You're not alone Thalia," Nico told her rather cheesily.

"You don't know how tempting it is," Thalia replied after a while. She breathed deeply, and the pang in her heart decreased slightly. "Patience was never my thing. You'd think that hunting would make me have endurance, and you have no idea how many times I'd get in trouble for letting animals get away."

Patience. Nico was another person who hated waiting. He had waited long enough when his sister was on the quest. And now, he had to wait for his cousin to heal and actually live. If he could heal at all.

"I need to see him," Thalia finalized, directing the phrase towards Nico.

The son of Hades forwarded his gaze towards his cousin, who stared back. "You can't."

"I'll just take a couple of seconds to see Percy through the doorway," Thalia reassured. "What am I saying; I don't even need your permission to look at my cousin..."

She started to go towards the doorway, placing a hand on her mouth incase she made too much noise and peered through with her eyesight. Light footsteps could be heard behind her and she didn't need to turn around to know it was Nico.

A smile covered Thalia's face as she stared at the sight.

"What happened?" Nico whispered.

"Come see for yourself," Thalia responded, reluctantly moving away from the doorway to make way for her cousin.

"They're smiling," Nico deadpanned.

"It means Percy's alive! Idiot." But a smile was on her face.

He avoided the fact that he might've known that already due to his son of Hades powers. He just needed the confirmation. And eventually, Nico grinned, and the fact that his cousin was alive helped his 'patience' to not let out a massive football cheer right there and then.

"I'm so glad he's not dead," a voice that was meant to be silent spoke rather loudly. "You have to admit you're happy that Percy isn't dead sis! Come on, cheer it with me! Percy is alive! Percy is alive! Whoo! Whoo! Whoo!"

"Great improvement to a few minutes ago," Artemis admitted, smirking at her sibling. He stared at her with a frown, but a grin somehow made its way up to his face. "Okay fine. Percy is... Alive. Big whoop."

"My lil sis happy,

Moonie is looking gloomy,

She says 'idiot,'" Apollo spoke in happiness.

"Idiot."

Thalia grinned at the Olympians' loud conversation. "Let's go find a snack."

Nico nodded eagerly, before attacking the shelves and trying to see if there were any cookies he could eat. He grinned as he found a jar of blue cookies, opening up the lid and biting into the cooked dough.

"Those were meant for Percy you know?" A voice told Nico.

The son of Hades turned around, the jar held in his arms protectively. A guilty look was on his face as he stared up at the eyes of Sally Jackson, who smiled in return.

"Ms. Jac- Sally?" Thalia asked incredulously. "I-I thought that you were-"

"I'm not deaf Thalia," Sally told her, but kindly. "I could hear Lord Apollo and Lady Artemis' talk. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Um..." Thalia looked like a deer caught in headlights. "I didn't want you to worry. I just thought that with Paul dying, and then your son abruptly nearly dying that you're stressed."

"So you told me that the Olympians are healing Percy and need to do it with privacy for me to go away?" Sally asked.

"Pretty much yeah," Thalia answered, shuffling her feet. "I just didn't want you to worry. I wouldn't have lied if there wasn't any hope for Percy to live. And I wasn't lying about the privacy part."

"So I heard," Sally said. A smile was on her face.

"Do you hear that?" Nico asked quietly. "Thalia? Sally?"

"Hear what?" Thalia asked.

"The door."

"I don't see anyone at the door Nico," Sally told him. "The person has to be invisible to only alert us now."

It took a while to process Sally's words. The cousins stared at each other, shock pulsing through them. Even Thalia felt like she had been electrified.

"She wouldn't," Thalia muttered. "She wouldn't dare come here, it's not possible. Why would she?"

"If she is here," Nico growled, and his Stygian Ice sword was already in his hands. "Then we'll just have to find her."

The son of Hades placed a finger on his mouth to silence them before moving forwards stealthily. He gestured for Thalia to come forwards, leaving Sally left in the kitchen.

They went together quietly, and Nico smirked. He pointed out the obvious shadow just in front of the door. Thalia could see that the shadow had someone wearing a cap. _Or maybe a New York Yankees cap_ she thought angrily.

"Tell me," Thalia said with fury, storming over to the shadow and took the cap off from where she could 'see.' "What do you think you are doing in this house?!"

"Th-Thalia," Annabeth stammered, seeing the angry demigod in front of her.

"Glad you remember my name traitor," Thalia spat out acidly. An insane grin that Annabeth had only seen a few times before appeared on her face. "Now don't you start running off like a coward. Let's see what the three other people will do when they look at you shall we?"

It was tempting. Annabeth stared at the closed door, knowing she could open it and run out in just a few seconds. Only one thing stopped her. The mission.

"Get the others," Thalia whispered to her cousin.

"No," Nico told her stubbornly. "You get them. I want to talk to the traitor."

His tone was 'calm' but also dangerous as he glared at Annabeth straight in her grey eyes. Thalia sighed, putting up her hands in the air as if to say 'have it your way.' With one more glance at 'wisdom's daughter' she left.

"What do you want?" Annabeth asked him coolly.

"What do I want?" Nico snarled, and darkness attracted itself towards the sword. "What do _you_ want?!"

The daughter of Athena remembered her cover story. "I came to see Percy. I-I wanted-"

"Yeah that's right you wanted, so go away," Nico hissed.

"It's okay Nico," a new voice joined in. "You came to see Percy? Well alright Annabeth, he just woke up from being dead. I'm sure he'll love to see you right now."

Apollo's words made Annabeth feel self conscious. She could feel pairs of eyes on her, and even though she tried not to get effected by them, it had to be Sally's disappointing gaze that made her feel the worst.

Sally, the one that had been like a mother she never had. Annabeth turned around to meet the mother's disapproving stare. The mortal shook her head, sighing deeply as she turned to look somewhere else.

"We can't do this," Nico suddenly said, stopping in his tracks. He ignored the stares he got, except for Sally's extremely small smile. "We can't do it to Percy. He's still sensitive. Think about it."

"I need to see him," Annabeth pressed on.

"Why?" Artemis asked, narrowing her eyes.

_They ask you that question, say you want to apologize, _a voice nagged Annabeth's mind. However, looking at Artemis' glare, and Apollo's curious but hard gaze, could she really pull off the lie that easily?

"I came to apologize," Annabeth lied.

"Liar," Apollo muttered darkly. His tone got louder. "The truth."

"Guys?" A voice asked tentatively. "Are you there...? I hear voices..."

The cousins completely forgot about Annabeth for a few seconds. Thalia could even do a tap dance as she rounded the corner, and saw her other cousin she was worrying about only a few minutes earlier.

"Percy!" Thalia couldn't help but yell.

"Kelp Head!" Nico greeted cheerfully.

The two cousins ran up to Percy as he grinned crookedly. He was trying to stand up but eventually he sat down again, the grin still on his face.

"Wow Thalia," Percy said in shock. "You've been crying?"

"Oh shut up," Thalia grumbled, but there was a playful light shining in her eyes.

"Where's everyone else?" The son of Poseidon asked strangely, looking around like Silena did when Beckendorf had died. He glanced at his surroundings and saw that some items were on the floor. "There wasn't a monster attack right?"

_Well if you call Annabeth a monster then yes, there is a monster attack,_ Nico thought, glancing at the four shadows that had yet to come in. He shook his head, and his grin size decreased slightly. _What if she shows herself...?__  
_  
"I'm sorry Percy, she escaped and now she's..." Apollo whispered, but still audible for the son of Poseidon to hear.

"Who is 'she' Apollo...?" Percy began to ask with a smile as he saw four approaching figures. One too many...

_Do you see 'Seaweed Brain?' Your girlfriend is back! Cry out in joy, because Mrs. Annabeth JACKSON is coming. Oh wait, I forgot... You aren't married. But you should! She voted for your safety in heaven or in your evil words of Tartarus. Pfft.___

"No," Percy whispered, flinching as he saw the 'blonde haired monster' come forth with a worried look on her face.

It was his own nightmarish reality. He could see that Annabeth had the exact same expression on from when that voting day. The same furrowed eyebrows. The exact same look. And he hated it.

"What do you want?!" Percy asked, venom mixing into his voice dangerously.

The daughter of Athena forgot what she wanted to say. She stared at him; Percy Jackson, the guy that she used to date. He had scars on his forehead and she clearly could see that he was not happy. Many emotions ran through her. And his face... It cut her deeper than any knife could.

"You should know that patience was never my thing," Percy continued.  
_  
__Oh really? You had plenty of patience when you were in Tartarus, you should've seen your face! So filled with cheerfulness as you awaited your next punishment.___

"You used to say your statements based on facts," Percy growled under his breath quietly. "Now they're all just lies."

"I-I came to apologize," Annabeth stammered, and she could feel two rays of sunshine bright eyes burn holes in her back.

"No you didn't," the son of Poseidon retorted.

"And how would you know?!" Annabeth yelled losing all her calm and shock.

"Look here Chase, why did you come here anyway? To taunt me? To hurt me more than you've already done? To kill me?"

Annabeth remembered one thing from the conversation with her mother:  
_  
__ 'So many questions he will ask,' Athena spoke, setting the book she was reading on the table. She gazed at her daughter intently. 'If so, kill him.'__  
_  
It was too confusing. Mind games played with her. Annabeth could feel Percy's eyes on her. She felt as if her knife was teasing her, gleaming rather brightly in the open space.

_'And if it's too hard for you,' Athena continued. Grey eyes met grey. 'Then I will do it instead. The boy is becoming a threat. The gods are going to turn on each other if he stays alive. You don't want another war do you?'__  
_  
_A war..._ Annabeth could already picture the scenes of the casualties. The horror and all the pain there would be. And the demigods would be left to fix the mess. The answer and action should've been simple for her: one person dead to save millions.

And yet, could she really do it? Kill a person- her best friend, boyfriend, or ex-boyfriend, in cold blood. Athena's words rang out in her mind, and she made her decision.

The three occupants stood a few meters behind Annabeth, being silent, and watching it all play out, no matter how much hatred they had. Except perhaps Sally.

"I'm sorry Percy," Annabeth broke out of her thoughts and she slowly walked forwards, a few tears spilling out. "I really am."

"Get away from him!" Thalia shouted.

"No, just let me explain!" Annabeth yelled back. Her tone lowered. "It was either me or my mother Percy... I'm so sorry."

And with those words being said, Annabeth took out her dagger and lunged before Percy could even react.

"Too slow Chase," Thalia whispered as she shot the arrow aimed for a headshot as Annabeth tried for a jump kill, which included her jumping and then stabbing with more force.

The arrow and the dagger both met their targets at the same time, but both were slightly miscalculated.

The dagger made its mark a few inches southwest his right shoulder blade. The exact same spot Kronos had stabbed him only a day ago. It was just a few centimeters above the organ. Still- immense pain burst inside of him. And since he was stabbed there twice, the old wound that had been slightly closed reopened.

Blood. That was all he could see. The initial shock had already passed and his visions blurred as he screamed. He clutched his wound as if it were his lifeline, and couldn't even move his right hand. Ignoring the hand that gently tried to grasp his hand; he turned around, gasping as he moved quickly.  
_  
__Pain pain insufferable, unimaginable pain hurts you in many ways. What hurts you more, the second betrayal or the physical pain Perseus? Wince, flinch, cringe all you want. Before it all happened, it was all 'Annabeth what would you think if we married?' Now it's, 'Annabeth what would you think if we die?' Who would achieve Elysium? I'll make sure you get a spot on Tartarus...___

Thalia was the only one who stared at Annabeth afterwards she had lunged. The arrow that she had fired had just grazed her head, damaging part of the prefrontal cortex. She towered over the demigod who stared back weakly.

"Why?" Thalia asked in barely a whisper.

"I-I didn't want another war," Annabeth coughed out blood and bit her tongue to prevent her screams. "Mom's orders."

"Your stupid, stupid pride," Thalia growled, towering over the younger figure. "Your mom lied. She lied all along. You just wanted to please her didn't you?"

"I was... W-wrong," Annabeth responded with an uneasy smile. She could feel blood trickling from the front part of her head, a bit higher than the forehead. "I really am sorry Thalia... I was never Percy. I-I just didn't want another war so I tried to kill him... Is he dead?"

"You've gone insane Annabeth," Thalia said with a tinge of sadness, but the statement left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Sally joined Thalia. She stared at the sight of Annabeth on the floor, not as badly damaged as her son, but hurt all the same.

"Do you think if Lady Artemis flashes her up to Olympus to be dealt with, she'll survive?" Sally asked worriedly, crouching down.

"Probably yeah," Thalia replied, and couldn't help the ice that was in her tone. She steadied herself as she heard another bloodcurdling scream, closing her eyes and wishing she could close her ears as well.

"Do you think she would do it?" Sally asked, staring at Annabeth with slight sympathy.

"I don't know," Thalia answered truthfully, trying to block out the sounds. "You should ask her yourself."

The daughter of Athena tried to say something, but it was inaudible. It was the same time Artemis came over. Thalia whispered something in the goddess' ear pointing towards Sally. Eventually the moon goddess gritted her teeth but nodded.

"You better be grateful Chase," Thalia muttered before nodding at Artemis. "Do it."

And with a snap of her fingers, Annabeth disappeared in a bright light, having been teleported to Olympus by Artemis. The last thing she saw was Thalia's cold electrical blue eyes glaring at her and Sally's neutral expression before blacking out.

**A/N: Hope you all had a good Christmas! I know there was some OOCness in here, also, keep in mind that the part where Annabeth got hit is important. Thanks for all the support!******

**Guest: Thanks!******

**omgcat (Guest): I'm not really sure if that's a good or bad thing...? And sure, Percy won't die.****  
**


	18. The Request

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 17

Shivering only added to the motion. All he felt was coldness. The heater was on in the small apartment but all he could do was scream. Scream and yell, no matter how much it hurt. No matter how sore his throat was, the pain hurt even more.

It was like a demented opera house. The others were running about as if the sky was falling, and Sally was shouting as Artemis led her away from her only son. She struggled against the goddess' bounds and yelled some more, desperately wanting to see how Percy was doing.

Rapid knocks on the door only added to the loud noises. Artemis closed her eyes and flicked her fingers. Suddenly, several shouts and the sound of people tumbling down the stairs could miraculously be heard. She breathed in deeply, knowing it was the cops.

The ground rumbled, as if it were hungry. Small objects fell to the ground immediately, and a precious vase that Paul had given to Sally crashed on the floor. It only made her seem to cry harder, as that was a collectable that the deceased mortal had given her.

"It'll only make it worse, just take out the knife!" Apollo shouted, trying to persuade the son of Poseidon to do what he said. He nearly fell over due to the power of the earthquake. "And stop the earthquake!"

The unfocused gaze in Percy's eyes seemed to have disappeared. The first thing he saw was the ground that seemed to be slowly crumbling down like an abyss had opened.

_An abyss... Tartarus... Hell underground... Great stuff. Don't you see? It's an opening to Elysium: Jump right in Jackson, I bet you're tempted right? T-T-T-T-T-Tartarus! Oh yeah! Whoop whoop that's the sound of the abyss!_He couldn't help but stare at the hole in the apartment. The Mist helped, and the neighbors were eating their breakfast with frowns on their faces. For a second, his eyes glowed red and he could hear the cold laughter echo around the apartment, and he twitched violently.

Uncontrollable shaking was the only thing he could do as the familiar laugh was driven back into his memories that he desperately wanted to forget. He could feel Thalia's hands hold his shoulders down as Apollo tried to get ahold of the knife.

_What are you waiting for Jackson...?__  
_  
A flash of recognition sparked in the electrical blue eyes as she stared at the knife. A short gasp escaped from her lips as she saw that it was the same dagger that Hal gave to Luke, who gave it to Annabeth. Fury sparked all over and she looked livid as electricity sparked, fueled by her fingertips.

Then came the problem. She was holding Percy's shoulders with her hands, meaning that she sent one of her massive electrical shocks into her cousin. Two hundred and thirty watts of electricity pulsed into his body.

_The only thing that can save you is jumping into Tartarus. Did you know that fact? Hmmm, I guess you didn't. Interesting piece of information!__  
_  
"I-I-I'm sorry!" Thalia stammered, gaping guiltily of what she had just done. "I-I didn't mean to- I'm sorry Percy-"

"Control yourself Thalia!" Artemis scolded, having let Sally stay in her room due to being 'out of control.'  
_  
__Jump. That's all you have to do. YOU CAN DO IT!_Noises filled his ears and his eyes flickered back to his dark sea green ones. He flung out one of his hands to swipe away Apollo's one, who looked surprised. Tingles of electricity bounced off him and he nearly collapsed on the ground again as he staggered up.

It was Nico who noticed what his cousin was doing first. His black eyes met with the sea green ones, and he could see the determination in the eyes. Determination... Or was it desperation?

_"Don't do it," Nico warned, somehow not being able to get close to his cousin.__  
_  
A forcefield of red and green surrounded Percy as he got closer to the abyss. He seemed to be forgetting where he was, and stumbled towards the gaping hole like he had an addiction. His eyes flickered back to red again.

"Don't," Nico repeated more forcefully, stepping in front of the abyss dangerously. He stared in his cousin's red eyes. "Snap out of it Percy."  
_  
__That's right, ignore the menace. Go home Percy. Go home. Kronos still has control over you. Don't you wonder how you're able to stand upright for so long without feeling any pain? All your homie's doing man, get in there!__  
_  
Red rimmed eyes changed to sea green. He suddenly seemed to realize he was only a few feet away from the hole with Nico standing only inches in front of it, trying to stop him from going in.

_No... NO! Go in! Jump in! Fall in! Get in!__  
_  
"No..." was the only reply Percy uttered before collapsing on the ground.

**(In the past) on Olympus, a few hours ago, right when Eros hit the arrow: ****  
**  
A blur of wood came speeding down of Athena, and she raised her shield just in time before it hit her face. She growled slightly, annoyed at the 'baby in diapers.' She whirled around, breathing in her grey helmet as she flung her spear at Eros, who dodged it easily.

"Scared Aphrodite?" Athena sneered. "Having a baby in diapers fight your battles?"

The goddess' eyes flashed dangerously. "Don't push it Athena."

"Or what?"

Aphrodite smiled. "Or else you'll let your guard down and get an arrow to hit you," she whispered softly.

"Alright, that's ENOUGH!" Zeus shouted, but it was too late.

Eros shot the arrow and watched it zoom past his mother's face and right into Athena's forehead. It stuck there like a demented unicorn, and she yelled in pain. Even goddesses weren't invincible- just immortal.

Golden ichor leaked out of the wound, and the other gods stared- openmouthed, before Aphrodite took a stiletto and threw it at her enemy with perfect aim. She walked to her rival slowly, bending down to meet her face.

"Don't test me," Aphrodite said quietly, before flashing out.

Silence. The only noise came from Athena, who was groaning as she ripped the arrow out of her forehead. The demented unicorn was gone- replaced with a furious goddess who was bleeding badly.

Finally, the gods started to react.

"Hermes, go get Aphrodite," Zeus growled menacingly. He banged his lightning bolt on the ground with a loud thud. "And where the Hades is Apollo?! Someone heal Athena right now!"

Hestia looked thoughtful, and gave a small sigh before snapping her fingers. Instantly, nectar and ambrosia was in front of Athena, whose grey eyes looked grateful as she stared at the goddess of the hearth.

"Annabeth," Athena called out, standing up after she had eaten the ambrosia. The wound on her forehead had mostly healed, but she still grimaced in pain as she touched it lightly. She gritted her teeth before continuing: "Come meet me in my library. _Right. Now_."

An athletic figure came forwards, looking forward but determined to do what her mother had asked. Before she could reach the goddess however, Athena had already flashed out. She immediately shut her eyes before the light blinded her.

"I wonder what that evil old cow wants," Hermes muttered, before glancing at Annabeth, who had already opened her eyes. "Two evil old cows."

"Cows aren't bad!" Hera complained, sending a glare towards the god.

"Oh yes," Hermes added as an afterthought. "I forgot that they were your sacred animal."

"Forget?! How can you just forget?! How about I say: I wonder what that old tortoise wants?" Hera screeched, offending Hermes' animal.

"That technically wouldn't match seeing as Athena is actually pretty fast so... APHRODITE! I forgot. It was an interesting discussion Hera; we could continue it some other time."

And with those words being said, he teleported away, showing the peace sign before he began his search for the goddess of love.

Hera huffed, turning to face the worried daughter of Athena with a frown. "And you, what are you still doing here? Shouldn't disobey your mother."

Annabeth could suddenly feel most of the Olympians' eyes on her and she couldn't help but feel color rise to her cheeks of embarrassment. She felt self-conscious as she nodded quickly, leaving in long strides out of the throne room.

Did she need help? She asked herself that question a few times as she glanced behind her to see who still remained. Then, remembering Hera's and Athena's words hastily hurried down to her mother's library.

The daughter of Athena usually liked to muse when she walked. This was a different case. The only thing she could muse about was her mother. And thinking about the goddess usually led to thoughts about Percy. Her ex-boyfriend. Her (ex) best friend.

It wasn't called fatal flaw for nothing. Her pride managed to get to her just in time before tears came, as she had remembered the look on Percy's face when he was teleported away. A sense of betrayal. A look of... Despair?

"Took you long enough," a voice spoke.

Annabeth looked up from the ground to see her mother standing by the doorway, an extremely small smile on her face. To her, it looked like it was forced. So many words for replies came to mind but she said none of them.

"Sorry," was the only thing Annabeth muttered before her mother let her inside. She took her chance. "So what did you want to see me for?"

Athena waited till they were both seated down. She picked up a book, her eyes skimming over a few sentences. "A request. So far, you're the only person that comes to mind for this... Mission."

The demigod leaned in, eager to hear more, feeling pride swell up. At the same time, a sinking feeling cancelled out parts of the joy, but she put on a small smile.

The goddess wasted no time in getting to the point. "I need you to kill Perseus Jackson."

It took only a few seconds to sink in.

"What?!" Annabeth shouted, her voice echoing across the room as if she was in a cave. Her voice lowered and she stared at her mother, continuing in a low hiss. "Why? You've already caused enough pain to him as it is- framed him for something he didn't do, put him to Tartarus, about to hunt him down-"

"Annabeth," Athena interrupted, keeping her calm but there was a dangerous flash in her grey eyes. "If I remembered correctly, you too, raised your hand to vote for his exile to Tartarus."

"And if I remember correctly, mother," Annabeth retorted, keeping her cringe to herself. "You were the reason for me to put my hand up."

"I didn't force you. I actually thought your love was pure until I saw your raised hand."

"... It was a test...?!"

Five seconds went by. Annabeth could tell by the dead silence, and the ticking clock that all of a sudden went 'CUCKOO' before going back to its ticking noise. She nearly jumped in shock but regained her composure, staring at her mother's grey eyes.

"That's one part of it. I was always curious, why did you raise your hand in the first place?" Athena asked, speaking as if she were the host of a TV show.

"Tell me why you did it, and I'll tell you my reason," Annabeth replied, trying to keep her anger down.

A glint was in Athena's eyes. "I already told you the reason. I raised you up better than that didn't I?"

"You didn't raise me at all!" Annabeth yelled, slamming her fist down on the table. "I want to hear the story from you."

"You don't talk that way to a goddess, much less your own mother!"

"You never acted like my mother in the first place!"

It was like a shouting match, both mother and daughter had stood up, anger flashing in both of their eyes. Athena realized that her daughter had said 'acted' not 'we're' which left a cliffhanger in their argument. She cursed in ancient Greek. The only way to go was to admit defeat. And if she wanted to go ahead with her mission...

"Sit down Annabeth," Athena said, picking her words carefully.

"And why should I?" Annabeth retorted.

"Because whether you like it or not, I am still your mother and you still have to obey me."

"Are you mistaking me for a dog?!"

"Be wise Annabeth, you don't even look close to one. What you're talking about is a stereotype. Now sit down."

Annabeth hesitated, looking at the doors and at the chairs. She bit her bottom lip, wavering, before sitting down in her chair, looking down at the ground.

The goddess sighed, trying a new tactic. "As far as I can tell, the only thing I'll tell you is why you should do the mission."

Annabeth's eyes flared, but Athena held up her hand.

"It's to prevent a war Annabeth. Don't you see? Think about it. So far, the Olympians have argued about only one thing in the past few days, and that thing is Perseus. If everyone keeps on taking sides, a war will break out. You don't want that do you?"

Silently shaking her head, Annabeth continued glaring at the nicely matted floor. She knew she should've felt angry at her mother but she felt... Nothing. No emotions at all. Except perhaps, a cold fist tightening around her heart, and guilt. She could feel her mother's eyes on her, and somehow, she already knew that Athena knew the answer to the request.

"So is that a yes?" Athena asked with a hint of malice in her tone as she met the eyes of her daughter. "It's either your ex-boyfriend that you've already hurt or the sake of our world."

"I-I," Annabeth stammered, fidgeting with her fingers nervously. For her, it was a worse moment than fighting a monster. "I... Yes."

_Better one person than the entire world,_Annabeth thought as a sinking feeling in her stomach turned up. She fought back tears to stare at her mother again, waiting for further instructions.

"Good. Listen closely Annabeth; I'm not going to repeat this twice. I'll flash you right in front of the Jackson's apartment door. You put on your invisibility cap, and open the door as quietly as you can. Their apartment was built only a few years ago, so the door won't creak that much. Go inside, and when you see him, use your dagger to kill him."

_Kill him. _Annabeth shivered and she was pretty sure it wasn't because of the cold. "Won't other people be there?"

There was an awkward silence before-

"From what I've gotten today, Artemis and Apollo are probably there, so try to be as discreet as possible. Thalia Grace and Nico di Angelo will most likely be there... Oh yes, and his mother, Sally Jackson will be there too."

The question was almost the downfall of the mission. Annabeth cringed as she heard those three names that stood out the most. Sally was like the mother she 'never' had. Thalia was like the sister she never had. And Nico... He was like a little brother to her. Four people (and counting) she ended up betraying.

"And then there's the possibility of you getting caught," Athena continued, ignoring the fact that Annabeth had been silent for a large amount of time. "Then there's plan B."

"With the fact that Artemis and Apollo are there, I doubt that I can pull this off," Annabeth couldn't help but interrupt.

"So many questions he will ask," Athena spoke, setting the book she was reading on the table. She gazed at her daughter intently. "If so, kill him."

There were those words again. Kill._ Kill, kill, kill,_rang out and echoed in her mind as she thought about the mission that she had mercilessly accepted.

"And if it's too hard for you," Athena continued. Grey eyes met grey. "Then I will do it instead. The boy is becoming a threat. The gods are going to turn on each other if he stays alive. You don't want another war do you?"

_You already told me that,_Annabeth thought, keeping her mouth shut to listen.

"Now, for your cover story. If they catch you, say you want to apologize, and want to see Perseus. I don't care how you do it, just make sure to get to the boy and kill him!" the supposed 'wisdom' goddess concluded, sounding slightly insane and maniacal at the end of her sentence.

"Kill him," Annabeth repeated as if she were in a trance.

Athena pursed her lips. "Yes. No time for second thoughts now Annabeth, it's time."

The daughter of Athena looked alarmed as she met her mother's piercing gaze that was directed at her.

And without another word, Athena snapped her fingers and Annabeth disappeared in thin air.  
**  
****Present time: ****  
**  
She fell from the air, landing on her back right in the middle of the throne room. A crunching noise was made, but she somehow miraculously survived the fall twenty feet above the ground.

The only one present was Hestia. With wide eyes, she rushed over to the limp figure of Annabeth. She frowned, wondering if her bleeding had something to do with Athena's request.

"Athena," Hestia called out, both out loud and mentally requesting the goddess. She glanced back down at the demigod, speaking softer. "Your daughter is severely injured, she's bleeding."

A pause. And then Hestia could hear the frantic thoughts or voice from Athena. _'I'll be right there, try to stop the blood flow, I'm coming.'_She sighed in relief, gently holding the demigod's injured head, and summoned a small cloth, bringing it to the edge of the scalp.

A small flash of light shimmered and disappeared in the room. Athena immediately rushed to the aid of her daughter, picking her up delicately, as if she was fragile.

A sharp intake of breath could be heard echoing around the throne room, and Athena's usual share gaze softened as she looked at the fatal injury.

"We should take her to the Olympus infirmary," Hestia said carefully.

The goddess nodded, tongue-tied as she gazed at her demigod daughter worriedly. Hestia flashed out, leaving first. Athena closed her eyes and flashed both of them to the infirmary in a hurry.

It was the third time Annabeth had been teleported that day. Except, for the third time, she might not be alive anymore.

**A/N: Really sorry for the late update, school has started so it'll be harder for me to update. Next time, I'll try to update sooner, (hopefully less than three weeks.) I also apologize for the chapter, (which is a filler but it had to be done sometime,) and any OOCness. Thanks for all the support!**

**Pailrose: Thanks, and I don't mind if you're ranting, it's fine.**

**Megathumb: Sure, it'll be sometime in the upcoming chapters though.**


	19. The Titan Rises

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or Obi-Wan Kenobi**

Chapter 18

"I-We've been expecting you Jackson. Welcome home boy!" a familiar cold voice cried, opening his arms as a hugging gesture. The talking turned to sneering. "That's all you are. Filth, which belongs here in Tartarus like the rest of us."

The demigod stared at the tall figure in shock, wondering how he could reform so fast. The Titan smirked as if he could read his mind. The half blood stayed silent, trying to think of a good strategy. He smiled.

"... So you're calling yourself and your comrades filth?" a voice with hidden fear spoke cluelessly.

The demigod son of Poseidon found a knife sailing above his head as if he were a magician's assistant. He didn't even flinch, but still bit back a retort of 'come at me bro,' even though the bro statement wasn't true.

"I won't miss next time boy," the voice hissed.

"So your aim was off?" the son of Poseidon spoke insolently. His humor was there, but his eyes told a different story.

"Insolent fool!" the Titan of time shouted in anger as if he were a grandfather scolding his grandson.

Percy bit his tongue, about to make an Obi-Wan Kenobi quote. He flinched slightly, most of his humor forgotten. He could still remember when he and his cousins had a movie marathon. Star Wars included. And it was supposed to be one of his better memories.

"It's your 'dream' idiot," Kronos spoke, chuckling maliciously. "I can control it-"

"Morpheus controls dreams," Percy pointed out, amusement evident in his tone as if he weren't in a life-or-death situation.

The only thing he got in reply was a laughing fest.

"And who controls Morpheus? I can make this your reality. I could make you stay here forever." Kronos managed to get out, ignoring the look on the god's face beside him.

"This is not a democracy!" Percy yelled out, banging his fist on the floor like he was a lawyer.

"Complaints go through me Jackson, do you have anything else to say?" the Titan said with a smug smirk.

There was silence. Not a single noise was made. Kronos started to open his mouth, arrogance evident on his scarred features. Then-

"Who died and made you the king of Tartarus?" Percy asked, allowing himself to show a crooked grin to the 'king of Tartarus.'  
_  
__Respect your elders Jackson. After all, you're finally home! Everybody clap. Snare drums. Curtains open. Go on, make a speech!_

"You are a fool Perseus Jackson, you are a fool that should never have been born at all!" Kronos roared, lunging at the demigod whose eyes had widened in surprise.

Not that he hadn't expected it. He dodged out of the way just before Kronos got out a knife and stabbed it just where he was a few seconds ago. He breathed in and out, staring at the Titan in disbelief. The Fates didn't seem to be on his side lately.

A cruel smile appeared on the titan's face as he breathed heavily. He took the knife out, cleaning it with a stained towel filled with blood. "You should know, Jackson, that I could kill you anytime. I don't care anymore.

"That's good news," came the sarcastic reply.

"I know exactly what you mean... Which is why I'll kill you right now on the spot." Kronos said, adding extra flair to his voice.

"You wouldn't." Percy deadpanned.

Loud music started playing. He could hear the lead singer scream out _'I've got bad vibes! Bad vibes man, damn, I've got bad vibes!'_ Kronos sent his signature smile towards the demigod who could only stay still.

"Hippie alert," Percy spoke quietly, stifling his 'awesome' laugh. He looked around, making his voice louder. "You have a stereo?"

_That's the spirit. Pfft, you would think this is the deepest pits of hell or something._"Only you ask stupid questions like that," Kronos snorted. He sat back on his chair, sitting with one leg on top of the other as if he were the godfather. "Of course we do."

There was a heavy silence.

"... I'm feeling in a good mood today Jackson," Kronos said, inhaling deeply as he sighed like an old man who hadn't taken his medication. His voice was scratchy, and as he clapped his hands, a dracaena walked over to pass him a cup of water. "Take him to his cell!"

In truth, it was all an act. The most stupid act on the planet- trying to get friendly with the Titan lord to hopefully get free wasn't exactly the best plan. He dropped the 'happy' facade.

All his sarcasm seemed to be gone as he glared with intense hatred. He spat in the titan's face, struggling as two Cyclopes guffawed at him as they led him to an unknown place.

"You're as bad as Athena," he spat out.

"No," the titan replied with a cruel smile. His yellow and black teeth shone in the dramatic theatre stage light. "I'm worse."

There was no reply. Kronos waved his hand as a gesture and with a happy smile, one of the Cyclopes sucker punched the demigod in the stomach, exactly where his old scar was. He didn't even have time to dodge before he gasped out, stopping his attempt to run away for a few seconds.

The Titan drank the water up in a gulp as if it were a shot of vodka as the Cyclopes led the demigod away. He grinned, wiping his mouth on his handmade suit.

"Boy should know who to respect," he told his army that was spread out in clusters. "I cannot get over the fact that I have the most annoying grandson in the universe. Still, I need him to rise. Right now is the best time to attack."

"Uh... Um... Sir?" one of the monsters spoke in a rusty voice. It trembled over his master's gaze. "But... You aren't fully reformed yet."

"The Olympians are moronic idiots. Hermes and the gods think that they have my essence scattered everywhere but due to all the support I've been getting, I'll rise in no time."

"Huh?" a helpful reply came.

"The gods are foolish," Kronos explained disdainfully. "They think I'm blown to dust. Think. Just think. They don't know the truth. Where do you think Zeus got his dramatic entrances from?" He paused for a second, scowling. "It was simple really, tricking them. All I had to do was convince Luke to swear on the River Styx that he wouldn't tell at the very beginning."

"Tell what lord?"

"That we were going to fake it. Prometheus told me some... Interesting things. As a backup plan of course. I thought we were going to win... However, if it didn't work out, we could trick the gods!"

"And you d-did!" a telekhine snorted joyfully.

"Yes," Kronos said in satisfaction. "It was simple really, I used Hestia's coal remains and scattered them around me, as if I had simply... Disappeared. Instead, I had simply teleported with mist, using the light when I left, to come back to a place we like to call Tartarus!"

Clapping and cheering could be heard, their voices echoing along the spacious infinite space. Kronos tried quieting his army down, but even when they didn't; an evil smirk was on his face.

"... Don't you need a body to rise?" came a loud reply, the monster's rusty voice ringing out in the deafening noise.

The noise subsided, and monster heads turned towards the source of the voice. The clueless Cyclopes that had spoken chuckled nervously, a deep rumbling sound coming out of its mouth.

The Titan growled. "Can't you see that I'm already in my body?!"

"... Yessssss... But it would be harder to kill if you were in another form..." a dracaena hissed.

"Then... I believe we already have a volunteer," Kronos spoke, chuckling darkly.

With Percy (still in Tartarus):

"In there kid," one of the Cyclopes said roughly, pushing the demigod in one of those maximum security cells. It smiled, showing only four teeth before slamming the cell door shut, leaving with his partner.

There was a moment of silence, before Percy started banging on the border of the cell. There were only gaps in-between the wall like he was actually in prison. He couldn't even sit down without feeling the pressure of being squished together.

"Hey!" Percy shouted, increasing the sound.

"Bye-bye little demigod!" one of the Cyclopes laughed, waving its arm in a goodbye gesture.

He checked his pockets and frowned. Riptide wasn't in his pockets, but a note was. Opening it up like a candy wrapper, he read it.

_'Dear Jackson, if you are aware, your scars cannot be felt. Guess who? Like I said before, good mood. Only if you manage to get back to reality is where you can feel your old ones and the new ones of course.'__  
_  
A smiley face was doodled messily at the end.

Percy crumpled up the note, throwing the slip of paper on the ground in silent fury. He glanced at his hands.

_He removed the pain of the scars Jackson, you should be grateful. The scars are still there, waiting... He's a great role model, you should learn from him!__  
_  
"Never," Percy whispered, leaning against the border of the cell, his hands clutching poles._So sad Jackson. You should know though, that with one snap of his fingers-__  
_  
He gasped, feeling his left arm shake as if he had Parkinson's disease.  
_  
__BOOM._

Fresh red blood leaked out unexpectedly. He shivered, covering his scar with his other hand and he suppressed the urge to yell. It hit him like a ton of bricks falling upon his upper elbow. Waves of force were pressing upon the scar, making it worse.  
_  
__It comes back. One by one, the feeling of at least more than ten scars will come back. Like. A. BOSS! Ha, sucker!__  
_  
"Perseus," a deep voice spoke.

The demigod looked up and saw the god that had gotten him in the dream in the first place.

"Morpheus," Percy said, scowling at the god while at the same time, making sure that he was hiding the blood as if nothing happened.

"Jackson," Morpheus greeted curtly. He snapped his fingers, looking around. "Better get you out of here."  
_  
__NO! Stupid Morpheus, can't you see that Kronos isn't mistreating you? You stupid shi-__  
_  
All Percy saw was fading darkness and loud alarms before he opened his eyes.

**In the Jackson residence, before any of the above happened:**

"I don't get it," Nico grumbled. "Every single time, he just goes unconscious."

"Nico," Sally said warningly, although she looked like she was close to tears.

"Idiot," Thalia added, punching her cousin's shoulder in frustration. She threw her hands up in the air. "He'll be fine, I know it."

Artemis looked at her half-sister curiously. "How do you know?"

"Well for one, he's still breathing. He's not exactly looking that bad... And it's this feeling I guess..."

"Well the breathing part is right. No comment on the looking bad part... Can you trust your feelings?" Apollo piped up, looking nervously at Percy, who had been carried to the couch.

Thalia fumed. "Who do you think you are?!"

There were many answers to that question, but Apollo answered with one. "One of his friends that also cares about him."

The demigod's gaze softened slightly but still kept it's 'dramatic' touch to it. She looked nervous, her stare landing on her unconscious cousin every time.

The doctor in the group checked the demigod's pulse every few seconds, as if it would suddenly be gone in one second. He bit the bottom of his lip in nervousness.

"I-I think I'll go make us some food," Sally spoke awkwardly. She leaned forward to ruffle her son's hair, before leaving hastily, a tear dropping out of her eyelid.

Artemis gave her brother a look. When he shook his head, she nodded, joining Sally in the kitchen- despite the mother's protest.

"He's not going to die Thalia," Nico spoke in confidence, although his eyes betrayed what he was feeling. "I have an even better feeling than you."

Thalia snorted. "Sure you do."

"I do!" Nico protested. He grinned halfheartedly. "I can tell when someone's dying remember?"

"How can I forget? It's basically carved in my memory after... After you warned me one of the hunters was going to die."

There was silence after that statement.

A loud gasp followed after that. Three heads turned towards the source of the noise as if it were on instinct, which it was.

Percy was in the same position, his weak sea green eyes staring at the wall expectedly as if saying 'I'm alive.' He breathed heavily, sitting up, no matter how much his back ached like Hades.

"Pe-Percy, okay, just lay down," Thalia rambled worriedly.

"Kro-Kronos was there," Percy spoke in a rush, feeling dizzy.

"Kronos?" Apollo asked for reassurance. He didn't worry that much at first, but still wanted information. "Where? Percy, what did you see?!"

"I saw Kronos, he was- he was... No, I could hear him saying something about... About rising, something about tricking the gods about him 'dying...' My hearing, I-I couldn't hear that well, I'm sorry..." Percy tried to form a sentence, but only ended up stammering.

Somehow, Apollo could understand the words. He looked 'thoughtful' but it seemed like he had already made an unofficial decision. The god looked extremely troubled and didn't even hear the screech of 'Percy' when the demigod's mother had found out (yet again.)

"Apollo!" a voice snapped him out of his musings.

He looked up, seeing the concerned face of his sister. "Um... Yes?"

"I've been calling you for a few seconds," Artemis responded, trying to look annoyed, but ended up looking worried. "What's wrong?"

"Percy said that Kronos is going to rise again," Apollo deadpanned, basically whispering out the words. "We need to tell the others." He glanced down, attempting not to meet his sister's sharp gaze. "And uh... We need to tell the gods."

"... You can't," a voice that Apollo couldn't identify spoke up.

"I need to. I-If Kronos rises again, then we're all doomed for life."

"But... Then..."

The god of the sun looked grave as he glanced at Sally. "I know that Percy could be in danger, but if Kronos takes over the world... There'll be more problems than just your son being endangered."

"... Do it," a weak voice spoke. Percy was still breathing heavily as if he had asthma. A frantic look was in his eye but he tried to stay calm. "You need to tell them right now, even though..." He didn't even bother trying to continue.

Sally looked alarmed. "Percy, you'll be-"

"Mom, you said before- no encouraged me to go on the quest to save her," Percy interrupted; avoiding her name like it was a deadly disease. He scowled for a few seconds, wincing at a thought. "Besides. You can't change a god's mind."

There wasn't much point in arguing anymore. Sally glanced at Apollo, who looked somewhere else.

"When I tell them," Apollo told the group. "I'll immediately send a message to Artemis, and then you'll have to travel."

"Travel where?" Sally butted in, her ocean themed eyes looking rather glazed.

The god looked mournful. "Sally... You aren't going."

"Shouldn't that be my decision?" the mortal spoke, her eyes scanning the room for any support.

No one would meet her gaze. Percy had lied back down again, but even then, his eyes were looking at anywhere except at his mother.

"Mom," Percy finally said. "You'll be safer here. The gods won't hurt you..."

There was silence for a few seconds. Sally bit her bottom lip, staring down to the ground like it was the most interesting in the world to stare at.

"Sally?" Artemis prodded gently, trying not to put pressure on the mother.

She looked up, a look of understanding in her eyes. "I-I understand. I just didn't want to lose you after I lost Paul."

"Paul was like a dad to me," Percy spoke, his breath more steady. "But I don't want to lose you either."

Sally was silent for a moment before she started crying and hugging her son. Percy looked shocked for a minute before he hugged her back, patting her backside comfortingly. He couldn't help but let a few tears fall as well, the thought of the gods coming to kill his mother ringing out in his mind.  
_  
__Think about it. They'll kill her. They're the gods. Actually... Oh sure maybe the evil ones won't kill her. They're too evil of course. But the good ones, oh-oh-OH the good ones. They'll chop her 'pretty little head' off for sure.__  
_  
As a reaction, his head snapped towards his mother's tearstained face, breaking up parts of the hug on the process.  
_  
__BOOM! Instantaneous reaction.__  
_  
Sally started to regain her posture. She stared at her son's sea green eyes. "Promise me you'll try to be careful."

"Trouble always seems to find me," Percy joked, but seeing the unamused expression on his mother's face, he turned slightly more serious than before. "I promise I'll try to be careful."

A small grin formed on Sally's face. She hugged her son one last time before standing up abruptly. "I-We should get packing."

Apollo nodded, taking one last look of the apartment. He was about to flash out when someone stopped him.

"Wait," Sally interrupted loudly, stopping Apollo from flashing out. He turned around. "Will I ever get to see them all again?"

The god only smiled in response, but he looked unsure. "Sometime, someday. We'll see. Close your eyes by the way." And then he flashed out.

**In the Throne Room of Olympus:**

A bright light shone throughout the fixed Throne Room of Olympus. The god looked around, amazed at how much the room had changed since he had last sawn it. He frowned, thinking of how much more complicated life was going to get.

Taking out one of his 'gods (AND GODDESSES) communicators for council meetings,' he pressed the single button on it that would send a signal to all of the Olympians.

It took only ten seconds for the Olympians (except for Artemis) to gather around the newly built Throne Room. He stared at the faces of the shocked gods.

"APOLLO!" Zeus thundered, his lightning bolt in his hands proudly. "Where is your sister?"

The sun god ignored the king of the gods' words and spoke. "Kronos is rising."

Only a few Olympians looked shaken. The rest laughed as if it weren't possible.

"And I swear on the River Styx that it's true," Apollo added in disgruntlement, a tinge of annoyance and worry in his voice.

Thunder boomed in the sky, and the people who laughed stopped.

"So that little punk is rising?" Ares stated as if he were bored. He threw a knife in the air and caught it. "Bring it on!"

"This. Is. Not. _FUNNY!_" Athena hissed in a loud tone, banging her spear on the strongly built ground. She glared at the god intensely. "Apollo, how do you know?"

If Athena's glare was bad, Apollo's was even worse. "Percy Jackson." _Now Artemis, teleport to wherever. Keep them all safe.__  
_  
The only telepathic response was: don't get yourself killed Apollo.

"You're telling us, that your source of information is Perseus?" Athena wanted to confirm, her eyes narrowing.

He followed the gesture. "Yes, _Athena._ Since you framed him and sent Perseus down to Tartarus, he has gotten information-"

"You say," Athena interrupted, a flash of guilt in her grey eyes, "that he has gotten information since he has gotten down there? If so, why didn't he report to the council immediately? He should have."

"For the gods' sake Athena!" Apollo exploded angrily. "He's traumatized! He might as well have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder!"

"Most demigods have PTSD," the goddess of supposed wisdom countered.

The Olympians watched them argue as if it were a soap opera.

"ENOUGH!" Zeus roared. "Apollo, please enlighten us."

"Athena's daughter tried to kill Percy," Apollo explained, sending a nasty glare towards the goddess. "She failed, missing, but still fatally injuring him. Thalia managed to prevent that from happening, and saved his life, by shooting an arrow at her...

... An earthquake happened. An opening to Tartarus formed in an apartment and he was walking towards it as if he were in a trance. Nico tried stopping him, and he went into an unconscious/coma like state. It was about one hour later when he woke up- waking up from being in Tartarus. That was when he told us about Kronos managing to trick the gods and rising."

Ares was still as enthusiastic as ever. "No one tricks the gods! I say, GIVE US WAR!"

Not a single voice agreed with the war god.

Aphrodite sniffled, ignoring the tenth glare Athena was sending her way. "Why is Annabeth being so stupid?"

Athena abruptly stood up, her eyes blazing. "My daughter is not stupid!"

A small voice loudened. "Silence!"

Heads turned towards the source. Hestia was back at the hearth, and the flames rose higher and higher until it looked like a geyser. She was standing up, fireballs visible in her eyes.

"Kronos is rising and you are all acting like kindergartners- no offense to them of course," Hestia spoke with a firm voice. "This is not the time to act like blood-lusting, accusing, gods! Yes Apollo, I realize that Athena has made a stupid mistake- but now is not the time to argue."

She took a small breath, the fire lowering down by two inches, before continuing in a more composed tone. "We need to plan this out carefully." She sighed. "And someone has to tell the demigods. Although without Perseus it's going to be harder. Annabeth is currently in a life-or-death situation, while Thalia and Nico might be unwilling to help."

The god of the Underworld cleared his throat. "Hestia is correct. Even though my son and Thalia are angry at Kronos, I don't know if they will be willing to help. Perhaps."

Poseidon was a little slow- still interpreting Apollo's words. "Athena's spawn tried to kill my son?!"

"And now all of a sudden you care about Percy!" Hermes yelled, feeling anger rise in his chest.

"As a matter of fact, yes," Poseidon responded in the same tone. "Where is my son now Apollo?"

"He doesn't wish to be seen," the god replied swiftly.

"Bring Perseus here," Zeus demanded. "He needs to be questioned."

"And he doesn't want to see you either," Apollo finished. "I'm warning you once, don't see him and all will be well. Except for Kronos of course."

Without another word, Apollo left. A second of silence stood, before Athena figured it out.

"He is at Sally Jackson's apartment," Athena spoke with a sick smile.

"Athena and Ares, go to the apartment ad bring Perseus here. Do whatever it takes," Zeus instructed. "The rest of you, stay here, do not leave until I say so."

The two Olympians teleported away. Hestia stared at her younger brother in horror.

"You're sick," Hermes said in disgust, turning away from the sight of his father.

"We need all the information of Kronos rising boy," Zeus sneered in response. "And if that means we have to make him unconscious and search through his memories then we shall."

**A/N: Sorry for the late update, but I was really busy with other things. I just realized a major error in the story that I'll try to fix (some chapters might be modified a little.) Sorry for the OOCness once again, I'm trying to make them IC, but in a story like this it's slightly harder. Thanks for passing the 600 review mark and all the other support!**

**Seems legit (Guest): It's an opinion.**

**This story needs (Guest): I'm not trying to be arrogant, but I preferably don't want a beta tester/reader. I don't exactly get what you're saying, but it's the shock, and the fact that even the gods can get hurt. Also, this is an AU, probably anything can be possible.**

**alyaJackson: Thanks for the idea, but I'm not going to use it. Maybe you could write a story like that.**

**Purple10 (Guest): Thanks and OOC means out of character.**


	20. Fatal Reunion

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians**

Chapter 19

Sally Jackson hated that at the last moment- just when she wanted to see them to the very last minute, she had to close her eyes due to not being burned alive from the bright light that the goddess had emitted. She stood there- still standing in the same position that she had been at least five seconds ago- frozen as if she had been frozen by the time lord herself.

A strangled choking noise came from the back from her throat and she let a few sobs come out noisily. Tears spilled down her cheeks and she stumbled forwards with her arms stretched out wide in front of her as if Percy would come back to her in an instant.

He didn't.

"C-come..." Sally tried to say, but she stopped, knowing it would be selfish of her.

Instead, more tears spilled out and a small pool of water had formed on the ground. Water, she thought in despair. Percy loves the water. And that didn't help the fact that she was already crying tears of salt water.

Through the doorway, extremely bright light that could leave someone incinerated shone through. On instinct, she closed her eyes shut tightly, hope rising up inside of her. A small smile wavered on her face as she slowly got up from the kneeling position on the floor.

Four aggressive knocks alerted the mother that it wasn't the group that had just left her. _If there was a monster attack, they could take care of themselves and make the knocks more... Desperate, _Sally thought wisely, backing away from the door. _And all of them would be yelling by now, unless it's the..._

The door flew open, the hinges nearly hitting her face if she hadn't dodged right in time. She stared at the now empty doorway in slight shock, her mouth agape as she saw two Olympians that she thought she might never have to see.

Athena and Ares were standing right in front of her (in human size.) They both stared at the mother, the goddess with surprise as if this wasn't what she had expected to see, a crying widow with nothing to defend herself with. The god had much less sympathy and simply sneered, showing off the spear he had ruined the door with.

"Sally Jackson," it was Athena who spoke first. Her calculating gray eyes stared around the apartment as if staring for any evidence left behind.

"Your daughter was here," Sally replied swiftly, wiping the tears in her eyes. They dried off pretty quickly.

"I heard," the goddess lied, stiffening up before continuing. "Where are the others?"

The mother couldn't help but narrow her eyes, before venomously talking again. She didn't even care if they were the gods anymore. "Why ruin his life anymore than you have to Athena? You framed him and he went to Tartarus, but is now back to the human world. Did you see his scars your grandfather left on him?"

The goddess clenched her fists tightly, feeling the slightest welt of guilt rise up in her. She refused to believe that she had made a mistake and stared at the ocean eyes of the mother instead of the window.

"Hey don't talk to us like that woman," Ares snarled, bringing out his spear forth.

"Ares," Athena spoke curtly, waving her hand as a gesture for him to stop his harshness. "Sally, it's fine if you don't tell us-"

With those words, Sally couldn't help but feel a small weight come off her shoulders. A small sigh escaped from her mouth as a sign of relief. However, judging by how the goddess was about to open her mouth again, she worried all over again.

"But," Athena continued sharply. "I'm sure that perhaps you would be more willing to tell the other Olympians."

"More willing," Sally repeated like an echo. She used a vehement tone as she continued. "Why would you think that I'm more willing to tell the other Olympians?"

"Oh she doesn't think lady," Ares said with a cruel smile on his rough face. "She knows."

She used to pray to Poseidon for help in any desperate, desperate situation. Now, the thought didn't even show up in her mind anymore. Her face roughened up in determination, and Ares' face started to stretch wider as he grinned in satisfaction.

"Ares get the Olympians here," Athena spoke in a tight, controlled voice. When she didn't see the god moving or teleporting away, she narrowed her grey eyes. "Now."

The god rolled his eyes before turning a corner around the doorway and flashing away. Sally held her breath as Athena finally turned towards her. Face-to-face.

"It's just the two of us Sally for now," Athena said tactfully. "Ares isn't going to kill you, I'm not going to kill you, or hurt you in any matter. All you need to do is to tell me where the others are."

Sally stood her ground, refusing to back down from the goddess' intimidating gaze. "Never."

Athena sighed heavily in false pretense. "Then we have a major problem here. Gods and goddesses can read minds. You know that I presume?"

A curt nod.

Athena flashed a small smile. "Well then. I'll assume that you'll know that we'll get it out of you either way. My way or the highway."

"I'll go for the highway then."

"I respect you Sally-"

"First of all, no you don't, it's basic mind tricks, and that won't work on me. Second of all, don't call me Sally."

The mother didn't even realize that a few Olympians had already shuffled in the apartment rather awkwardly. Ares gazed at her with hatred in his eyes and he rushed forward to grab her neck.

"Let me get things straight Sally-" Ares interrupted, about to reach for her neck to strangle her when Poseidon punched him in the jaw.

"Don't touch her," Poseidon spat out.

"I'm not a porcelain doll Poseidon," Sally said, using the same tone as her previous lover. She looked around, and only saw the faces of a few Olympians.

She was in too much sadness and bitterness to even care about the fact that some of them were accusing stares. Hushed whispers were spread around, most of them towards Athena. And with a sickening lurch, she realized that all of the Olympians were the ones that voted for her son's banishment.

"So," Zeus started awkwardly, clearing his throat before continuing. "Let's see. I'm sure Athena has already informed you about... Everything that's happening?" He didn't even wait for a reply, and his face was set into a more harsh position. "Well then, Dionysus, you may begin."

**With Artemis, Thalia, Percy, and Nico:**

The message came at least two minutes after he had left.

"It's time," the goddess announced in a hushed voice. She glanced at Sally who was trying not to cry as she hugged Percy one last time.

"I'll be okay mom," Percy reassured his mother, but his voice had a slight edge to it.

It seemed like a never-ending hug. Artemis stared at the embraced pair in guilt as she thought of what to do next.

"Sally close your eyes," Artemis told the mortal firmly.

The mother did as told, but when she did, the goddess teleported all of them excluding Sally away. The thought _'she didn't even get to say goodbye properly'_ rang out in her mind like a constant ring from an alarm clock.

The words weren't the only thing that was on her mind. She heard someone yell in anguish. Turning around eventually, she saw Percy with bloodshot eyes.

"You could've asked," Percy spat. "Instead of being a cruel-"

"Percy," Thalia warned rather quietly, leading her cousin the other way of where they were. She didn't even think he heard her. "Calm down."

"I didn't even get to say goodbye-" Percy continued in a more hushed voice. He got cut off by the goddess herself.

"You'll get to see her again Perseus," Artemis interrupted, marveling at the boy's faith.

"You don't understand," his tone was cold.

_You tell her Perseus. Tell her all about her wrongdoing. Her misguided sense of what's wrong and what's right. TELL HER! It's a must. She doesn't understand anything. Not a single thing._

"The others," a panting voice suddenly alerted them. Apollo had somehow flashed in almost silently without making much of a light surprisingly. "They're searching for you Percy. A-And they're probably... They're probably going to your mother's apartment to look for you."

Silence lasted for only a few seconds.

"No," Percy whispered, his hushed tone cracking. "No, no, no, no, no... We have to go back." When he didn't see anyone moving, his voice got louder. "We have to go back!"

Artemis shook her head silently, turning away from the depressing sight. Apollo just stared at Percy in sympathy as he yelled himself hoarse. His cousins were protesting with him.

"I can't turn back Percy," Apollo finally said, his voice with a tinge of sadness in them. "You know I can't."

"They'll kill her!" Percy screamed, beating his fists against the other god's arm. "They'll kill her and you won't even care!"

Apollo's blue eyes flashed dangerously. "You can say I'm selfish. Dominant. Proud. But don't ever say that I don't care about your mother."

"Then turn back."

"You know the reason why we can't go back. You know why."

"Percy," Nico whispered to his cousin. He made sure none of the gods heard, before continuing again. "I can still shadow travel."

It was only then did they know where they actually were. Percy looked around, a cold fist still tugging at his heart as he thought about his mother once again. Focusing was too hard since everything became rather blurry.

_Oh snap! You just entered a man-hater territory! Sucks to be you. I knew Artemis would betray you along with Apollo. Good-for-nothings I tell you! Pffft, go after mom man. GO GO GO!_

"Milady?" a voice asked cautiously though hints of malice was in it, most of it directed towards the males in the group.

Slightly startled, Artemis turned around. Only to come face-to-face with her hunter. "Phoebe?"

A relieved sigh came from the hunter though her tough facade seemed to crumble a bit. "You've finally returned. After... After you left we decided to hunt something for eating but when one of the hunters wanted to shoot a deer, a hellhound pounced on her."

Artemis' gaze didn't waver but her breathing increased. She gestured for her best tracker to continue, not speaking any words.

"I'm sorry milady. We tried our best to heal her but she..." this time tears prickles at the edge of her eyes. "She died." Her fists clenched angrily.

The goddess, despite the situation, still remained rather composed, although her expression looked troubled and forlorn. "Who was it?"

"Artemis they aren't here anymore," Apollo interrupted at the worst moment. He looked as if he had been searching a long time for the three united cousins.

"What do you mean they aren't here anymore?!" Artemis snapped, losing her temper.

"I'm telling you," Apollo tried saying it coolly but it just sounded worried and regretful. "I think Nico shadow traveled them all away back to Sally's apartment. We," he paused to let out a shaky breath he had been holding in, "should go with them. I know I said that we shouldn't but since-"

Phoebe watched as her mentor hesitated with answering. Her thoughts were bitter. _Is she really going to ditch us for the other males and Thalia? _She questioned, still gazing at the two gods intently.

"We need to go now Artemis they could be-" Apollo rambled on, seemingly caring much more for the others now that they had disappeared.

"I'm not going Apollo," Artemis cut her brother off.

He stared at his sister, although part of his expression told the others that he wasn't surprised.

"I need to be back with the hunters," she explained, meeting her brother's unsurprised gaze with confidence.

Apollo could only nod his head like some sort of zombie, not even trying to argue. He knew that was what his sister had to do. However, no words even came to his mouth.

Things were getting awkward. With two siblings not looking at each other and a bitter hunter looking at the floor, Apollo nearly forgot what was happening.

"You should get going," Artemis suddenly spoke. Her silver eyes stared at her brother one last time, before she turned. "And we should too. Good luck Apollo."

Without even saying anything else, the goddess and the hunter sprinted off. Apollo stared at the zooming blurs that were hastily running back to their base. He closed his eyes, before teleporting away. Back to the place he had just left fifteen minutes ago.

**In the Jackson's residence:**

They came at the worst possible time. Percy could see his mother struggling against Ares' strong grip on her wrists. Her face was pale and sweating. Dionysus was (guiltily?) doing some 'memory searching' although he was attempting to hold back of the information, he noted.

"Stop it Dionysus," Zeus ordered once he saw three demigods appear out of nowhere. "Why take someone's memories when we have not one but the three demigods right here in front of us?"

"Why indeed Zeus," Thalia spat out on the ground, glaring at her 'father' with her vicious blue eyes.

The king of the gods pointedly ignored her and continued. "Leave the mortal here. Ares, you can have the courtesy of escorting the three demigods back to Olympus."

Said god grinned cruelly and waved his hands before Nico could even attempt to shadow travel away. He was too tired. Handcuffs appeared on their wrists and duct tape covered their mouths so they couldn't say anything except for their muffled shouts.

"Stop!" a fierce shout came.

Most heads turned towards the shout of a female. Sally Jackson- released from her bonds was standing right in front of her former 'jailer' in anger. Her fists were clenched and her blue/green eyes looked livid.

Percy stared at his mother in admiration but his eyes were extremely pained.

_You know what's going to happen next don't you? It's going to be a grand finale of Ares' move. When it all comes crashing down on you, your wall will crumble like a pot of cheese melting for a fondue. HA! Got you there Jackson, cheese doesn't crumble. Smiley face._

With a flick of the god's fingers, Sally flew backwards, smashing the huge window which ended up shattering on impact. No balcony was there to catch her fall. Instead, she ended up free falling towards the ground.

A muffled strangled choking noise emitted from the demigod's throat. His breathing had nearly stopped and all the color drained from his usual tanned face. Yet there were tears in his eyes. Eyes that stared at the smashed window in shock.

_Can't believe you forgot Apollo. Step your game up. He had a vision. He'll be right at the bottom, waiting to catch... And that's when all Hades is going to break loose Seaweed Brain. Smiley face._

**A/N: I'm really sorry for the almost-a-month late update but I just moved and wifi seemed to have been a problem. Thanks for all the support, I really appreciate that you're all bearing with me even though I don't update that fast.**

**(Also, I have a poll on my profile asking which chaptered story I should put on hiatus since I have lots of things going on and I can't handle everything at once anymore.)**

**peeta12321: Thanks, I was thinking about that idea and so far, I'm not sure... A good story of where Percy gets sent to Tartarus is 'On the Brink.' And there are probably many more on the site that gets updated probably faster than mine. 'Redemption' and 'Pain' are good ones. Sorry if I'm not that helpful.**


	21. Captured

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or the Godfather****  
**  
Chapter 20

"Yes Jackson, your momma is dead. I threw her out the window," Ares explained like he was an insane therapist trying to get Percy to accept something. "She's dead. Gone."

The full force of the statement hit him worse than a ton of bricks. The pain he felt when he first arrived in camp was nothing- completely inferior- to what he was feeling now.

"What have you done?!" A horrified voice asked.

He looked up for the first time to identify the source of the voice. Hestia. She could see the color of his eyes. They weren't bright and cheerful anymore- they hadn't been ever since he got out of Tartarus. Instead, the usual happy sea green eyes that would radiate waves of kindness were replaced.

Replaced by a dark brooding sea green that didn't radiate kindness. It seemed to be long gone. Hestia met his pained gaze sadly, nodding her head once out of respect, even though she was a goddess and he was a demigod.

"I'll ask you all again, what have you done?!" It was more of a yell. Hestia's fiery eyes literally looked like two fireballs.

Even Ares stepped back from the angry goddess in child form. He raised his hands in surrender, although still managed to crack a small grin as if saying 'forgive me for killing a dude's mother?'

"Hey Hestia, it's nothing, I just took care of something, that's all." Ares said with a casual tone.

They were all treating her like she was the boss of all of them. As if she were on the same status as the Godfather- which she wasn't.

"You." Hestia spoke calmly, but there was an extremely dangerous edge to her tone. "_You._" She repeated. Everything and everyone was silent as she continued. "You threw his mother out the window and you don't even care. She was innocent."

"She wasn't talkin-" Ares protested.

"You had no right!" Hestia spoke loudly, her temper going overdrive. "_You had no right at all_."

"Well it's not like anyone really cares or anything," the war god replied, picking the dirt out of his fingernails with his Swiss army knife.

It was faster than anyone in the room had seen before. A blur was going -faster than the goddess of the hunt- towards the war god with another blur that seemed to resemble a sword, as the goddess of wisdom could see. She realized what was going to happen too late.

There were probably major earthquakes happening all around the country, but he didn't care. He broke free of his handcuffs and somehow, his legs managed to go super speed towards Ares. The hatred he felt for the god only increased.

And before anyone could do something, he leaped, high in the air like he had a black belt in karate before crashing down on the god, pinning him to the ground with his sword raised to kill in a downwards motion.

"STOP HIM!" Zeus roared, his lightning bolt ready to fire. "SOMEONE!"

The Olympians that were present rushed forwards to help their acquaintance. Hestia watched the scene, seeing how Percy had a crazed look in his eyes. She knew that look. The look of vengeance and hatred.

"Percy, stop," Hestia commanded, stepping forwards and resting a gentle hand on his shoulder.

His hand wavered, hesitating when he was only a few inches away from stabbing Ares' neck as retribution.

"Stop," Hestia repeated. "This isn't like you."

And that was all it took. A moment of hesitation from the demigod. Ares took that advantage and sent a kick to Percy's stomach. He went flying across the room and smashed into a wall, into one of the pictures that still hung from a nail.

The glass to protect the picture shattered into itty little bits of even more glass. He fell to the ground with a thud, and blood quickly pooled around him. _'Hey! How ya doing Perce?'_ Unconsciousness greeted him in welcome, although that was his conscious talking. As always.

The two cousins struggled to talk with the heavy duct tape that was still there. They struggled to get out of their handcuffs with fierce glares. Nico held an even deeper respect for his older cousin, wondering how he managed to get out of the handcuffs.

"Hefftieh," Thalia tried to yell, but it only ended up being muffled. "Heffia!"

"ARES, ATHENA, CAPTURE THEM!" Zeus continued his dastardly commands. "BRING THEM ALL TO OLYMPUS!"

"Have you not seen what he has done brother?" Hestia pleaded, holding Percy's head in her lap as a motherly gesture. She tried to stop the blood flowing. "And this is how you repay him?"

Zeus ignored his sister's pleading and teleported away, back to his comfort zone of Olympus.

"Poseidon," Hestia tried. She knew he was her only up "He's your son. Please."

The sea god wavered, unlike most of the present Olympians who had already flashed away. The other two gods tried to get past Hestia and Poseidon but to no avail.

"Just capture the other two first," Athena strategized, her glare fierce as she met Poseidon's gaze. "I thought you were on our side Poseidon."

"Always loyal, and only once a betrayer," Poseidon spoke firmly, meeting the 'wisdom' goddess' gaze evenly. "What about you Athena?"

"I don't have a side," Athena spoke tightly. "I pick the right ones."

Hestia nudged her brother and he got the message right away. Keep her talking. His mind was going blank, but he tried his best.

"And you consider this right?" Poseidon questioned. "Ask yourself clearly Athena, everything you've done. Was it right? Was it just? Was it Athena worthy? What you've done has put shame to your name! By the gods, clear you owl pooped head and see things clearly for once!"

For once (or twice), she was speechless and didn't recover for some time. It was time enough for the two gods to get the other two demigods which were still struggling with their 'jail equipment' on.

She recovered eventually, her eyes narrowing at Poseidon carrying his son, and then at Hestia who was taking care of the other two demigods. Ares had been trapped in a fire prison and kept on yelling at them to let him go. If she could somehow manage to get the sea god to splash it with water...

"You still trust Perseus Poseidon?" Athena taunted, hiding behind Ares' fire prison. "You're just a stupid-"

It was only a matter of time before Poseidon made a gesture with his hands. Water gushed over to the 'wisdom' goddess and the fire died out quickly, due to the massive amounts of water. Ares grinned as he cracked his knuckles.

Hestia's eyes widened, after freeing the two demigods. "Poseidon look out!"

Ares had charged at the sea god with a heavy brass knuckleduster and punched Poseidon with a heavy ferocity. He let go of his son and kneeled down on the ground, clutching his stomach in pain as it bled golden ichor.

"Take him and go!" Athena commanded with the same authority as her father. "Leave the others!"

The war god did as told, though grudgingly. He hauled the unconscious demigod up and quickly flashed away. Athena smirked slightly, taking a glance to the occupants before teleporting away as well.

"No..." Poseidon whispered from the ground, his voice coming out in a hoarse tone. It got louder. "_No_!"

"No! We'll get him back! We'll get him back here and we'll escape like we planned..." Thalia spoke desperately, before realizing how stupid she sounded. It wouldn't work out.

"She's not dead yet," Nico spoke, looking up, specifically at Poseidon. "Sally Jackson isn't dead yet."

**With Apollo: **

A woman's scream pierced the ear. So loud, yet it seemed so distant. He looked around. No one bothered to check the noise source, since no one could exactly hear it. Even he had trouble finding where the chilling scream came from.

She screamed again- this time closer. He looked both sides, biting his lip in worry. It sounded so familiar...

He finally looked up at the apartment the Jackson's lived in. There was the source- coming from above- yet plummeting down quickly. Little pieces of glass hit the ground before the woman ever did, and realization finally dawned upon him.

The falling figure was Sally Jackson. Swear words rang out in his head as he kept on staring with his mouth hung open, seeing her come closer and closer...

Apollo had to admit, he had no idea what to do. He thought of conjuring up some soft material to catch her but it was a long way down. She could've been dead already and then massive amounts of guilt would swell up in his mind for as long as his immortal life would take him.

So he did it the last minute, old fashioned, clichéd way.

THUD. The sound of two bodies hitting the ground could be heard, and even if not, it could still be felt through the vibrations. He had caught Sally like a knight in shining armor. _She isn't dead. She isn't dead... _The thought rang out in his mind.

It didn't mean that she wasn't unconscious though. He gently rolled her off of him and inspected her bruised face. A few pieces of wee shards of glass clung to her face, which were dug deep inside. Blood was still running down her face like mascara gone wrong, except it was blood red in color, not black.

Curse words repeated themselves in his head as he stared at her dripping bloody face. He manipulated the Mist quickly as an afterthought of another one of his worries. _At least she's alive,_ he thought grimly. _Though barely._

In all of his time of his immortal life, he didn't think he had ever faced a situation like this. Usually he would bring her to the Olympus ward and heal her but at times like these... It was too risky. Going anywhere was risky, since the Olympians could be hunting for him.

The usual healing processes he would use to save people had vanished. And he couldn't help but lead his thoughts to the boy- man, who had 'caused' it all. Technically, it wasn't his fault. _No, it's Poseidon's for even creating him in the first place, then the Olympians wouldn't be against each other. Yet he did save Olympus..._

He blinked, confusion running around as quickly as the blood flowing out. _Sally_. The fact that sticky red liquid was overflowing his hands alerted him.

The god quickly took out his first aid kit, although the only thought that was running through his head was that it wouldn't do much.

Her eyes opened suddenly, staring at Apollo's dim blue ones in shock. She scrambled back- in fear almost- as if she had already accepted the fact of death and expected to see Charon. It's obviously extreme shock, he thought dryly as she started opening her mouth and closing it like a goldfish.

"I don't understand," Sally finally said. "A-Ares threw me out the window and I was falling..."

"And I caught you when you fell," Apollo finished, handing her a white bandage of sorts. "Clean up the blood as best as you can. It may hurt because of the antiseptic, but you'll be fine."

He flashed a reassuring bright smile that was probably meant to be encouraging. Instead it was one of those fake doctor smiles they gave to patients, trying to be sympathetic as if they understood how they felt.

She didn't need any sympathy.

**On Olympus, the Throne Room:**

"Father, we got him," Athena spoke, an expression on her face that no one could identify.

Even though only some were happy, all of the Olympians, except for Poseidon, Hestia Apollo, and Artemis, were present. Dionysus faked a clap, though he yawned, showing no signs of interest.

"Good job Athena," Zeus acknowledged, before turning to his other son. "Ares."

"Look at him!" Hermes shouted in an outrage. "What you're doing is sick!"

"It's the first time you're not speaking in slang Hermes, what sick do you mean?" Athena countered rather innocently.

It took the strength of Hephaestus to make sure Hermes didn't lunge at Athena recklessly. Seeing as he couldn't do anything to harm the goddess, he just spat at her feet, saliva dribbling down her simple shoes. She just smirked.

"I have to admit Athena," Hades spoke, sighing. "You used to be very wise. Look at yourself, my niece. I have probably watched you from the Solstices, grown up into what you are today, and I have to say, your decisions are one of the most pathetic I've ever seen. Apart from father eating me of course. That's number one on my list."

"I don't need to be told off by my uncle Hades, I've already been told off by Poseidon," Athena spat out. She turned to stare at her father in the eye. "Your brother is a traitor father."

"For what? For saving his son?" Aphrodite retorted angrily.

"Exactly." Athena deadpanned.

Aphrodite stared at Percy, who was still unconscious. He was still bleeding. A solemn expression crossed her face, and she raised her hand to her mouth in shock. Some other Olympians followed her gaze.

"Just look at him," Aphrodite whispered, though still audible. Her voice cracked and seemed heartbroken at the sight. "So fragile yet so..." She struggled to find a word that matched. "Peaceful."

It was true. Even through all the battle scars, and all the agony he was probably in, his expression seemed peaceful enough as if he never wanted to wake up to reality. He didn't seem to be having a nightmare.

"Yes well," Zeus cleared his throat in a nervous manner. "Back to the more important matters at hand-"

"This is important," Hades spoke, interrupting his brother. "What if I told you that Perseus, the same hero who saved Olympus could be dying right now?"

Zeus flinched slightly at the 'hero of Olympus' part as if he knew Percy wasn't guilty. He waved it off as if he were a bratty teenager rudely gesturing for a nerd to go away.

"Okay fine," Hades spoke again, cutting anyone off who was about to speak. "What if I told you that Perseus, the same hero who saved Olympus, _is_ dying right now, unless someone heals him, or at least takes care of him?"

Aggravation was evident on Zeus' face and he finally broke when the Olympians started to call out suggestions. It was the moment of truth. In this case, fate could work two ways. _A war could break out if he died..._

"Alright!" Zeus shouted, calling order in the Throne Room. "Someone go see what they can do for Perseus'... injuries."

Immediately Hermes and Aphrodite sprang forth as if they were medical doctors. The love goddess wrinkled her nose as she came, though still tried to help. Hades stayed on his throne, 'encouraging' them. The others watched with bated breath.

"We need to bring him to the infirmary," Hermes spoke, looking up, a plan forming in his mind.

"Do what you wish," Zeus shrugged. "Ares, go with them. When you're done, get him back to the Throne Room. Quickly."

Mentally, Hermes screamed in his head. _Cold hearted fool,_ he thought in disdain. Yet it was still expected. He nodded sullenly, lifting the demigod up with ease and teleporting to the infirmary. Some other uninvited Olympians came as well.

"He's so skinny nowadays," Demeter commented, as though she ignored the fact that he had been in Tartarus. "More cereal."

"He'll get through," Hephaestus replied gruffly, somehow feeling the slightest bit of guilt of sending Percy to Tartarus. "He's a strong lad."

"Perhaps..." Hera mused. "Perhaps we've been a little harsh on the boy. Perhaps it's Athena who should be thrown in Tartarus. She has used the sword and killed one of Poseidon's bastard children. And then Perseus still gets the blame. It doesn't sound very... Fair."

"Yes well," Zeus muttered rather nervously. "Fair is not a word that we use a lot around here."

"Because we're the Olympians," Dionysus deadpanned in a drunken fashion. "And we don't take orders from anyone but ourselves. Especially not from some petty demigods like Peter."

"Well said Dionysus," Zeus spoke dryly. "Very well said."

For some reason, Hera got a tad bit annoyed. "Remember Dionysus, you were once a demigod yourself." She warned.

There was a stunned silence from the Olympians that remained and were present.

"Hera, dear, are you alright?" Zeus asked, scrunching his eyebrows together in either confusion or anger.

"I'm fine," Hera snapped. "I'm going."

Zeus looked like he wanted to protest, but before he could even open his mouth, she teleported away, a bemused look on her face as though she didn't know what she was doing herself.

"Well that was nice," Hades remarked dryly. "She's becoming more and more like herself everyday."

"You're wrong," Zeus retorted, feeling bitter that his wife may have turned against him. "She's changing."

"Back into what she was when she was in father's stomach. She might be your wife but you were the only one who wasn't in his stomach. Back then she used to be decent..." Hades mused thoughtfully, reminiscing back in his thoughts and memories. He looked around. "Who knew my little brother could change such a _caring_ soul?"

"Stop! Y-yo-you know nothing about Hera, stop lying!" Zeus roared, thudding his lightning bolt on the ground.

"Its true brother," Demeter agreed softly, though her words were still audible. Her eyes narrowed. "Now that Hades mentioned it... I'm guessing you changed her."

"She changed by herself!" Zeus defended. "She is who she is now, any fantasy of her being whoever she was before is gone!"

"You persuaded her didn't you?" Hades questioned. "Before Athena attempted anything pathetic, Hera was... Changing? And it was right after the Titan War too..."

"What did you persuade her with?" Demeter asked harshly, not giving her brother any mercy. "Tell the truth."

"Demeter, would Zeus here, actually be admitting the truth in front of us?" Hades asked in slight amusement. In reality, he was bored and wanted to see his brother's angry expression. He was doing a much better job than he thought. And yet, almost everything he had said was based on facts. "Now that's a thought."

"It's not a thought. What you should be thinking about is that I saved you both, all of you from Kronos' stomach!" Zeus shouted arrogantly. "Without me, you would all be dead, or still in his stomach!"

Hephaestus mumbled a quick 'ah' while Hades just muttered something among the lines of 'here he goes again.'

"And tell me, what do I get in return?! Can't I get a wife?! I saved you all but yet you still treat me like I'm just some minor stranger or demigod suddenly turned Olympian! CAN'T I GET RESPECT HERE!?" Zeus thundered, his voice escalating to a louder pitch until he was screaming out his rage. "I SAVED YOU ALL! All I want is respect! Is that so hard to ask?! I am the king of the gods!"

_He demanded respect. That was his problem. _Hades realized the fact with a shake of his head.

"If you didn't already hear," a sudden voice spoke, silencing them all. "A fight broke out in the infirmary."

"And Perseus?" Hades asked out of curiosity.

Hermes stared at his uncle in sadness. "He's awake..."

"Tell the truth Hermes," Hades demanded, although sadness was evident in his eyes. "I can feel his life force draining away."

"Alright, I think he might be dying," Hermes stated bluntly.

"Unless?" Demeter questioned, thinking the situation might not be as grave as it sounded.

Hermes stared at her. "I don't think there is any unless. At this point, I don't know what can save him except for a miracle."  
**  
****A/N: Again, I am extremely sorry for the delayed update and any OOCness that was displayed in the chapter. The good thing is that my story 'Don't Mess with the Cabins' is going on hiatus so I can probably update faster. Thanks for all the support!**

**smegol26: Perhaps, it'll come though.**

**M0RKIESTAR: It's basically :) in word form, though it doesn't really mean anything.**

**Psychostarz: Basically when Kronos 'died' he actually teleported out of Luke's body, leaving only the remains of the demigod behind.**

**Reshawn Mercer: Basically Sally 'dies' but the voice is telling Percy that Apollo can save her.**

**Fuyutaro son: It means he won't age when in Tartarus, but when he gets released, he'll age normally again.**

**Isabel1327 (Guest): I don't have an updating time, it's more random, but it hopefully will be under-a-month update next time.**

**deadgod: I'll try to update faster next time... How long did it take for you to write that?**


	22. No Respect

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians****  
**  
Chapter 21

"It's been decades Hermes, since a miracle, has last happened," Zeus told his son, looking unamused. His lightning blue eyes flashed, showing he was still raged from earlier.

Hermes gritted his teeth. "Olympus was saved. If you don't call that a miracle, then you must be blind."

Hades remained silent, although his black eyes were staring at his younger brother. _No respect.__  
_  
The king of the gods' morose expression loosened, changing into a more neutral look. He could almost feel the disappointment radiating off the gods present in the Throne Room. It wasn't respect, or admiration. _Disappointment._

"Go," Zeus halfheartedly growled finally. When he didn't see anyone moving, he sighed. "Go and make this 'miracle' happen Hermes."

He never did get to make the 'miracle' happen. Before the god of travelers could even move, shouting was audible in the distance. He didn't notice Zeus storming down to the infirmary himself, instead letting out a sigh, before joining the ruckus.

"ENOUGH!" Zeus roared, his minty breath spreading through the air. "WHAT THE HADES IS GOING ON HERE!?"

All Olympians stopped fighting immediately, obediently staring at the king of the gods in surprise, as if they didn't expect him to come. His electrifying blue eyes looked ready to kill anyone that dared to talk, even though he had asked the question.

"If I may, I believe what caused the fighting was-" Athena started but got interrupted.

"Not from you Athena, your lies and deceit has showed enough," Zeus cut his daughter off.

She stared at him, aghast in shock. For the first time in her infinite life, she had never heard her father talk back to her. And it hurt. Her grey eyes stared at her father, obviously wounded at his words. _I thought you were on my side. Father..._

She never did get to say those words.

"Alright," Zeus spoke in a more controlled tone, glancing around warily. "Where is Perseus?!"

Aphrodite looked like she might be about to cry, and she sniffled a few times, wiping a few tears away with a handkerchief. She refused to say anything, although she shakily pointed her hand towards a figure on one of the infirmary beds.

The Olympian leader turned his gaze to the curled up figure who was covered up in blankets as if he was _cold_. He scoffed at the mere thought of it, watching as droplets of sweat dropped from the demigod's forehead.

It was a sickening sight in a way. He recoiled at the way he hadn't noticed it before. Not noticed it before. Well that was one way to put it.  
_  
_"And I'm sure Ares would kindly explain what just happened," Hermes spoke, breaking the lasting silence.

Ares broke out of his stupor-like-state. He glared at Hermes, before speaking gruffly. "The punk got it coming. I was doing him a favor anyway. Dying is worse than going back to Tartarus."

"Hey don't you-" Hermes snarled.

"He's right," Athena agreed with Ares, sending a nod towards her acquaintance. "Dying is a much better choice than Tartarus."

Aphrodite's ever-changing eyes changed to a dark blue one, showing how sensitive she was. "And now you feel sympathetic towards him." She sniffed again.

Athena turned towards the love goddess sharply, her face aggressive as she glared harshly. "Don't you dare speak of that-"

"I can speak whatever I want," Aphrodite made her statement.

"Well, he's halfway dying and halfway living," a voice regarded the situation with a frowning face. "One more pathetic thing from any of you and he'll be dead."

"Define 'pathetic,' Hades," Hermes replied with a grim expression.

"Stabbing him, throwing heavy stones on his face, sucker punching him in the stomach..." Hades defined, glaring at the most obvious gods who would do it.

Ares just shrugged casually, not caring at all, even though the death glare the lord of the underworld was giving him sort of made him feel uncomfortable. Sort of._ Funny but... Whatever.__  
_  
"Poor Perseus," Aphrodite spoke, her eyes watering. "He can't ever take a break... And his love life is pretty much dead..." A few tears slipped out. "I-I don't know what happened between them... They were... Perfect. It was an example of pure love until... Athena's daughter betrayed him... So, so, sorry..."

_So that's why she pities him,_ Athena thought, shaking her head slightly. _Because Annabeth 'betrayed' him, and since they were the example of 'true love' she felt heartbroken._ She had it all figured out in a much more simplified version than Aphrodite's sob story.

"Do you care at all Athena?" Hermes asked.

"I don't care anymore," Athena answered monotonously. She stared at the god with her intimidating grey eyes. "I have no regrets."

"And yet you're still staying here instead of going to you daughter who is right over there. And she does not look well."

She was being publicly humiliated in front of everyone. Even more so when she glanced at her daughter, as if she had only noticed that fact when Hermes had said it. _A fool._

"Where's Apollo when you actually need him?" Zeus grumbled, emphasizing the need part.

"Well he wasn't in the apartment with those midgets," Ares offered, growling. His fierce eyes darkened. "Poseidon and Hestia have left us."

"Poseidon?" Zeus repeated in surprise. "Hestia has always been the kind one, but Poseidon...?"

"He probably realized that he had made a mistake, and went to fix it," Hades mused, staring at his younger brother. "As should you with your daughter."

"She has said before, I am not her father. She is not my daughter Hades," Zeus replied coldly. "Not anymore.

"At least you still have a daughter," Hades snapped.

"NO! Apollo, you-" Aphrodite screeched. "Don't take him... Please, no..."

She was too far off to do anything, and could only watch as Apollo silenced her with his finger on his lips. Although they both knew the damage was already done.

"Hey don't take that punk away, he's staying here," Ares ordered menacingly, cracking his knuckles as he stepped forward.

Apollo glanced at all the Olympians present, his gaze lingering on Hades. "He's halfway dead and halfway alive. I'm the god of healing and you're the god of death. Maybe if..."

"You're just going to make him suffer?" Athena asked softly. "Maybe Dionysus can tell you something."

"The only thing Dionysus is good at is getting every single camper's name wrong. He's ungrateful. Hestia gave up her spot as an Olympian and now look at him, becoming drunk and making everyone's life at Camp Half Blood miserable," Apollo snapped, looking irritable.

Dionysus wasn't in the room at that time. Zeus however, was. He narrowed his eyes, opening his mouth to argue, but Hermes managed to talk first. He had caught on to his half-brother's plans right away and tried to bide some time.

"You know it's true."

He remained silent, as the background gods moved. Apollo nodded towards Hades who just stared at him, showing some type of acknowledgment before nodding his head slightly.

They disappeared silently, with only a small flash of dark and bright light signaling that they had teleported away. Even Ares turned a blind eye, the hint of a grin forming on his face. He was going to enjoy watching the demigod suffer.

"I..." He was going to say more, if not for the disappearance of three people in the room. Lightning flashed outside, as the king of the gods looked around. "WHERE DID THEY GO?!"

Ignorance was bliss.

**With Sally and Apollo (Past):**

"You think you can manage walking?" Apollo asked in concern, watching her stand up while wobbling slightly.

Sally stared at the god and tried to remind herself that not all gods were evil. "I'm fine."

"Did you know that 'I'm fine' is one of the biggest lies there is?" Apollo replied swiftly.

"I'm sure it is."

Apollo scratched the back of his head, looking at the mother with worry. His eyes lit up, before he slouched slightly, frowning at himself. He muttered a small 'I'm so stupid,' under his breath before glancing at Sally again, this time with hope.

"I can teleport you to the apartment!" Apollo spoke brightly, as if finally realizing that fact.

Sally stopped in her small steps, glancing backwards with a knowing look in her eyes. "I was waiting for you to offer that."

It was amusing for her to watch his expression. Still, she noted that the god's expression seemed fake. She had seen too many of those when Percy had come home- either because of Gabe or when he came back from camp. She barely noticed when the god touched her shoulder lightly.

She did, however notice when she was in another place that she distinctively remembered was her home that she had fallen out off. The shattered glass from the broken window was still there.

At first, shocked faces stared at her. Nico smiled like he had expected it. The two immortals were less baffled than the ex-daughter of Zeus, whose lightning blue eyes were still wide.

"Sally," Poseidon whispered, still staring. He looked stupefied.

Her eyes dimmed slightly, after (ignoring Poseidon) and noticing the fact that two people were missing. "Where's Percy?"

A certain type of awkward silence hung around the apartment. Sally shook her head slowly, whispering no, over and over.

"It isn't like that!" Thalia finally shouted, though her voice still cracked. "He... He was taken."

"... Taken?" Sally whispered, squeezing her eyes shut as if she hoped it would be all a dream. She reopened them with no such luck. "By who...?"

Nico had a faint idea of where Percy had gotten his slight obliviousness from at that precise moment. He flinched slightly, knowing firsthand how it felt like when a person that was close went missing. It was torture not knowing what was happening to them.

"I might have a chance," Apollo spoke up, ignoring Sally's question. "Percy's in the infirmary right now, so if I grabbed him..."

"If he's in the infirmary then he'll have a better chance at healing there than over here," Sally responded, trying not to make her voice sound snappy. Seeing as Apollo had blinked ever-so-quickly though, she could tell she had.

The son of Hades bit his lower lip, preventing himself for saying that the infirmary will do no one anything without a doctor. He kept his mouth shut.

"If Percy's in the infirmary, then he must be really injured badly," Thalia commented, not thinking clearly. Her voice shook. "Zeus must be feeling some compassion."

_Dot, dot, dot..._ Nico thought wearily, watching as Sally sat down in one of the full working chairs. _Way to go Thalia..._ His eyes closed, before feeling something. _Life aura... Fading..._

"Apollo might have a chance Sally," Hestia spoke up softly, staring at the mother with sympathy. "And perhaps-" she paused slightly, turning to glance at the son of Hades as if sharing a secret. "A miracle will happen, even though not too many people will be aware of the change."

"Great, I'll be on my way-"

"I should go with you," a voice interrupted Apollo.

Sally stared at the person she used to love and but turned away after he had caught her eye. She spoke tightly. "I would prefer you didn't."

"I am trying to save my son-" the voice identified as Poseidon spoke.

He had cut off himself, as if even he had trouble believing it. Looks of disbelief and slight flashes of rage passed along. His face roughened up, looking intimidating. The air got tense.

"Apollo, go... He might not have that much time left..." Nico spoke to the god quietly.

"Look away then," Apollo nudged Nico one last time before fading to the background and teleporting away without anyone noticing him except for the shining light.

"... I don't trust you anymore Poseidon."

Thalia moved closer to her cousin, shuffling her feet nervously before noticing Apollo's appearance. "He's gone isn't he?"

"Did his lack of being the only blonde in the room make you notice?" Nico replied sarcastically.

"Yeah, it actually did," Thalia shot back, trying to ease the tension. "I hope they'll be back soon."

'They'll' referred to both Apollo and Percy. She breathed into her hands and rubbed them together as if she were cold.

"Hey, the lack of auburn also made me notice something else..." Nico commented uselessly. "Artemis is also gone."

She wasted no time in looking around for her parent figure. Her eyes were downcast. "She's probably with the hunters."

The silence that hung between them wasn't broken again.

"Sally," Hestia called, softly gripping the mother's shoulder. She steered her to the kitchen. "I know you don't want to see him... I'll go talk to him; maybe you could make something for when Percy comes back."

The mother nodded wearily, shuffling into the kitchen like a zombie.

"I was just trying to help out a little Hestia, why can't anyone understand that?" Poseidon spoke truthfully, turning to his sister.

"If you've betrayed him once, it'll be hard to regain his trust again," Hestia replied, sighing tiredly. "Maybe it's for the best if you return back to Atlantis again. Your people need you."

Poseidon stared at her with betrayal evident in his eyes; and, Hestia noted, the exact same aura that Percy had at the beginning. She met his miserable gaze with her fiery eyes of her own.

"Please Hestia, just... Just let me stay and try to make it up to him... I've already lost one of my children due to Athena. I don't want to lose another as well so quickly..." Poseidon spoke pitifully.

"And whose fault was that?" Hestia reprimanded sharply.

The god chose not to reply, wisely keeping his mouth shut. He knew he had wronged the people who trusted him, yet he still persisted to try and make things right again.

"How can I make things right again?" Poseidon asked, pleadingly.

Hestia glanced at her brother sadly. "It's not up to me to decide."

**A/N: Well the story 'Don't Mess with the Cabins' has been put on hiatus, so the updating times will be quicker. Thanks for all the support and I really appreciate that all of you got me over 700+ reviews!**

**Shadow-God-Time-Hunt-Ice-Tide: It's a good idea, but I'm not going to go to that route, sorry.**


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